Opposites Attract: The Jinchuu Arc
by ButterflyMeadow
Summary: With Shishio defeated, Kameko and the Kenshingumi return to Tokyo with dreams of a bright future. But before anyone can truly enjoy the peace, another threat arises from the past, while Sanosuke and Kameko find themselves where they've never been. Sano/OC
1. Another Beginning

**A/N: Wow been a while guys but I'm back now, thanks to some light homework days! :D So I'll just continue with the story and not waste your guys' time :)**

**Meerca: Okay, Saitou-san, you're up! :D**

**Saitou: . . . *glares* Hn. She doesn't own anything except the **_**kame**_**. Whatever that means.**

**Meerca: Tee hee, arigatou, Saitou-san! ^-^**

**Opposites Attract: The Jinchuu Arc**

**By Meerca aka ButterflyMeadow**

**Chapter 1: Another Beginning**

"Closer that time!"

"Argh . . . I'm not done!"

"Oro!"

Seventeen-year-old Kichida Kameko couldn't help smiling at the familiar outcry from the redheaded rurouni as she went through katas with her twin sakabatou; the weakness she'd endured for a month after the epic battle with Shishio Makoto and the Juppongatana was finally fading. The lady of the house, Kamiya Kaoru, had lent Kameko a kimono and hakama for training because the kunoichi's outfit had been destroyed in that same battle.

Once Kameko felt satisfied with her katas, she connected the two hilts to create a double-edged sword, or tsurugi; she had yet to get used to the new weapon, not having seriously used one since her training days many years back. Nevertheless, the kunoichi twirled the tsurugi a few times before leaping into action again. However, it wasn't long before she grew tired, and she leaned against one of the wooden pillars for support.

"Man, how can you three even do that in this heat?" the gangly brown-haired young man, Sagara Sanosuke, asked in disbelief, lounging on the wooden porch and waving a rice paper fan in front of his face. He grinned as Himura Kenshin, the redheaded rurouni, and Myoujin Yahiko, the brash black-haired kid, finally stopped sparring. "I've never seen ya givin' the kid a lesson before, Kenshin . . . I thought you weren't _gonna_ teach Hiten Mitsurugi-ryuu!"

Kenshin smiled as he put the bokken over one shoulder. "That isn't what was being taught, that it wasn't."

Yahiko's chestnut eyes flashed. "_What!_ I thought it _was_, you no good lousy jerk!"

"Oro!" Kenshin took a kick right to the cheek. "B-but Yahiko, you said you wanted to master Kamiya Kasshin-ryuu, that you did!"

Kameko and Sano looked at each other and laughed as Yahiko grew tired within seconds and huffed as Kenshin gave another placating smile. "All this one wanted was to help, that he did. Is that wrong?"

"You lose, Yahiko," Sano snickered.

"If you want to beat Kenshin-san, you'll have to do it with Kamiya Kasshin-ryuu, Yahiko-kun," Kameko laughed.

"Whatever . . ." Yahiko grumbled.

"Hey, you idiot!"

Everyone turned to the gate, where a young man with thick black hair running down his shoulders and a printed headband and coat was walking onto the dojo grounds, a broad grin on his face. An identical grin stretched across Sano's face as he stood up to greet the man. "Hey, you turd! Been a while, where you been, Katsu?"

_Katsu?_ Kameko thought. _Haven't I heard that name somewhere before?_

"I should ask you that, Sano! I haven't heard from you in a couple months!" The man Sano called Katsu looked over at Kenshin and Yahiko. "Hey, you two. I know this is a long time overdue, but sorry about giving you all trouble earlier."

"Do not worry, Tsukioka-san, all is forgiven," Kenshin smiled. "It is most pleasant to see you again, that it is."

Katsu smiled in relief. "Glad you feel that way." His gray eyes turned to Kameko questioningly. "Umm . . . sorry, madam, but I don't recall seeing you before—"

"Oh yeah, this is Kichida Kameko," Sano introduced quickly. "She came to us a li'l while after I found you again. Kame-chan, he's Tsukioka Katsuhiro, but he goes by Tsukioka Tsunan these days. He's a childhood friend of mine from the ol' Sekihoutai days."

"_Konnichiwa_, Tsukioka-san," Kameko bowed. "Nice to meet you."

"Likewise, Kichida-san," Katsu nodded, bowing too.

"Oh! Tsukioka-san, is that you?"

Everyone turned to the gate again to see a young woman with midnight blue hair in a ponytail standing there, looking pleasantly surprised. "Hello, Kamiya-san," Katsu smiled a bit sheepishly. "Sorry for barging in like this, I just wanted to check up Sano."

"Oh, no, no, I have no problem with that!" Kaoru smiled. "Stay as long as you'd like, I just came by to get Yahiko!" She turned to the aforementioned young boy. "It's almost time for your shift at Akabeko, you ready?"

"I know, I know, I'm coming!" Yahiko turned to Kenshin before heading off. "We'll train again tomorrow, right, Kenshin?"

Kenshin smiled and nodded as Kaoru followed Yahiko. "Today I'd like to come along."

"What? Why?"

"I just want to see Tae and Tsubame-chan, is all." Kaoru turned to Kenshin, smiling brightly. "Bye, Kenshin! I'll be back by sunset!"

Kenshin smiled back, setting the bokken on his shoulder yet again. "Okay. _Dewa mata_."

Kameko and Sanosuke exchanged smiles behind Kenshin's back, looking away quickly when the rurouni turned around. "Now, would you like some tea, Tsukioka-san?"

"Sure, why not?"

"This one must put away the bokken and check the laundry, that he should . . ." Kenshin turned to the kunoichi, who was sitting on the porch with her twin sakabatou off to the side. "Kameko-dono, would you . . . ?"

"_Hai_, Kenshin-san, I'll take care of it!"

Kenshin smiled as Kameko went inside and called softly after her, "_Arigatou_, Kameko-dono. _Gomennasai_, Tsukioka-san, this one will be back, that he will," he added before retreating into the shed at the far end of the dojo's front yard.

Katsu looked between his childhood friend and the open screen door once before remarking with a sly smile, "You know, Sano . . . she's pretty cute."

Sano chuckled. "You and me always did have the same tastes."

"So?" Katsu nudged his friend for emphasis.

"So . . . ?"

Katsu rolled his eyes. "_So_, what's the story?"

A snort. "Nosy-ass reporter. Stick that snout somewhere else, why don't ya."

"Ooh, harsh. So, what gives?"

"Shut up, Katsu."

"Not until you answer my question."

"I already answered it. There's nothin'."

"Nothing at all? Not even in the future?"

Sano sighed in frustration. "You ask too many questions. Even Captain Sagara used to say that. But no, there is _nothin'_ interestin' over here." He glared at Katsu, daring him to say another word, but it was ineffective as the ex-fighter-for-hire's face softened, though marginally, upon glimpsing Kameko in the hallway. Katsu could only smirk.

"Man, Sano, this is worse than that one time you were crushing on one of the Sekihoutai soldiers' daughters!"

"Shut up!" Sano growled, sneaking a glance around the yard and doorway to make sure it was rurouni and kunoichi-free. "Kenshin and Kameko have the craziest supernatural hearing, you turd!" He shoved Katsu, but playfully. "Ya really think so, huh?"

"Sniffing out stuff like this is a breeze for me, you idiot, you should know that. I haven't seen you smiling so much since you were around Sagara-taichou." When Sano was silent, Katsu pressed on, "Come on, Sano, it's obvious, and you're telling me you're not going to give a peep?"

"And why the hell would I?" Sano lowered his voice even further. "I'm not gonna ruin our friendship just 'cause of some . . . some stupid crush or somethin'."

Katsu rolled his eyes. "Sano, you're not at the crushes stage anymore. You're nineteen—"

"So, Katsu, how've you been doin'?" Sano interrupted suddenly.

Katsu raised an eyebrow. "Uh, good . . . ? Why are you—"

As if on cue, Kameko appeared in the doorway with a tray of steaming green tea and some mochi. "Kenshin-san, the tea's ready!"

"This one is coming, Kameko-d—ORO!" A crash could be heard from inside the shed, along with more oro-ing.

Sano and Kameko couldn't help laughing. "That's Kenshin for ya!" Still chuckling, the ex-fighter for hire shouted, "Hey, Kenshin, need some help?"

"This one is fine, that he is . . ." The rurouni wobbled out of the shed with dazed eyes. "Kaoru-dono keeps too many things in that shed, that she does . . ."

While drinking tea and eating mochi, Katsu and Sano told stories of their days with the Sekihoutai. Around midday, Katsu decided to head back to his place and promised to drop by again if he got the time. Once he left, Sano suddenly groaned. "What is it, Sano?" Kenshin and Kameko asked, confused.

"Guess I'll start heading out, too."

"Oro? But there's _youkan_ chilling in the well, that there is . . ."

"Sounds good . . ." Sano looked at his bandaged right hand and flexed it. "But it's time for another med exam. The vixen'll never shut up if I'm late." Sano briefly put an affectionate hand on Kameko's head, something he'd been doing a lot of lately (so often it didn't even make the kunoichi blush anymore like it used to), than began walking away, one hand in the air like a wave good-bye. "Save me some _youkan_, yeah?"

Kenshin and Kameko looked at each other and smiled. "_Dewa mata_, Sano!" the kunoichi called after him.

Suddenly, the ex-fighter-for-hire whirled around and suddenly grabbed Kenshin by his kimono collar. "Oro?"

"You didn't answer," Sano said very seriously.

_Never get in the way of Sano and his food_, Kameko laughed to herself quietly.

"_H-hai_," Kenshin squeaked out, sweatdropping.

Sano grinned and patted him none-too-gently on the back. "Knew I could count on ya!"

". . . One feels one's self less and less respected, that he does," Kenshin murmured to himself and Kameko stifled a giggle.

Sano took no notice of Kenshin's mumbling and beamed as he waved emphatically. "See ya!"

"_Dewa mata_," Kameko repeated, letting a few giggles escape her.

"Phew," Kenshin sighed in relief as a light breeze began playing with the tinkling wind chimes. "Let's see . . . there is always laundry needing to be done, that there is."

Kameko stood from her spot on the porch. "I'll help too, Kenshin-san!"

Kenshin smiled appreciatively at the kunoichi. "_Arigatou_, Kameko-dono. Let us begin quickly."

Kameko nodded with a smile. "_Hai_."

**A/N: Hopefully the next chapter will come sooner ^^ Please review lots everyone! :)**


	2. Mysteries of the Past and Present

**A/N: Here's the next chapter guys—things are about to heat up already! Enjoy everyone! :) Shoutouts to all twelve of my reviewers so far, thanks so much Sleepyreader319, HellsingValentine28, rnn21, saitou's lover, UneFilleFrancaise, SystemRestore, Kaisuikage, Bonnia, D-grayhitman Reborn, April Marciano, pokemonjkl, and Mi-chan1991! I appreciate it lots ^^**

**Megumi: Meerca-chan owns nothing except a few parts of the plot and Kameko-chan. *flips hair and looks at Meerca* Wait, shouldn't you be doing homework?**

**Meerca: Ano . . . I'm almost done! *sweatdrops* Arigatou anyway, Megumi-san!**

**Opposites Attract: The Jinchuu Arc**

**Chapter 2: Mysteries of the Past and Present**

"_Kame-chama!_"

That was all the warning Kameko got before being tackled. The thing was slight, but it still forced her a couple steps back. She looked down in alarm when she felt something grabbing her waist and then brightened. "Taro-chan! How are you? I haven't seen you for so long! _Konnichiwa!_

The little boy now came up to Kameko's upper stomach, and he hugged her legs tightly as he chimed brightly, "_Kon-ni-chi-wa, Ka-me-cha-ma!_" The adorable still-childlike smile on Taro's face was contagious, and Kameko felt one spread across her face as she bent a little downwards to hug him. "I'm doing awesome! How about you?"

"I'm doing well, too, _arigatou_." Kameko tried picking up Taro, only to find he was much heavier than when she'd last seen him, as well. "You've grown, Taro-chan! How old are you now?"

"I'm going to be eight soon!" Taro declared proudly. "Obaa's been giving me lots to eat so I grow up strong like otou was!"

_He still calls me Kame-chama, just like when he was a little baby. _Kameko smiled. "How are they doing?" Taro was the grandson of the Murakami Aoi and Murakami Akemi, a warmhearted elderly couple who ran a fruits and vegetables stand in Tokyo and had done Kameko numerous favors when she'd been wandering on the streets for almost a year after her grandmother's death.

"They're doing awesome, too!"

"Good!" Kameko looked around. "Why are you so far away from the stall, Taro-chan? Did your grandparents send you to do some errands?"

"Oh! I need to go home now! Obaa needed me to fetch some medicine for ojii and she said I needed to hurry!" Before Kameko could ask what was wrong with Murakami, Taro grabbed her hand. "Come on, Kame-chama! Obaa and ojii would be glad to see you!"

"_Hai_, I'm coming." Kameko let Taro lead her back to the stall, wondering what was wrong with the elderly man.

"_OOOOOO-BAAAAAA!_"

"Taro-chan, don't yell," the woman with white hair gently chided the brunette boy. She then smiled at Kameko. "Kameko-san! I haven't seen you around at all. _Konnichiwa!_ And is that a haircut? Your bangs look different."

"_Konnichiwa_, Akemi-san," Kameko greeted with a little laugh; for an old woman, Akemi was known for her gossip and constant chattering. "And _hai_, I did get a little haircut. Some of my hair . . . singed when I was cooking over the fire." Which was a lie, but Kameko didn't want to delve into the painful memories of the battle with Shishio and the Juppongatana ever again. Akemi had no clue what had transpired or that Kameko had even been gone, anyway.

"Oh, that's most unfortunate. It looks pretty good though!" Akemi looked down at Taro. "Taro-chan, the medicine, _onegai_?"

"Here, obaa!" Taro pulled small vial out of his hakama pocket and handed it to Akemi, who smiled and kissed the little boy's forehead.

"_Arigatou_, Taro-chan. Let's go see ojii-chan now, right?"

"Akemi-san, what happened to Murakami-san?" Kameko voiced her concern.

"It isn't too serious, Takani-sensei said it was nothing to worry over too much. She did suggest this medicine, however." Akemi moved the vial in her fingers.

"Can I see him?"

"_Gomen_, Takani-sensei said Aoi-sama might be contagious . . . she said it's best that we, since Taro-chan and I have been with him this whole time, only see him—just to get him medicine and food, too."

"That's okay, I understand," Kameko nodded. "Tell Murakami-san I wish him the best."

"Of course," Akemi smiled with a small wave. "_Ja ne_, Kameko-san."

"Bye-bye, Kame-chama!" Taro chimed in, waving emphatically. "Come back soon!"

"I will! _Ja ne_, Akemi-san and Taro-chan!" Kameko turned and began walking on the path to the Akabeko; it was the umpteenth party in the two weeks the Kenshingumi had returned from Kyoto—all Sagara Sanosuke's ideas, of course, the kunoichi thought with a smile.

Kameko could see the Akabeko in the near distance, as well as a flaming orange mane in the doorway that could only belong to Kenshin. However, curiously, there was someone else there too—a very large, muscular man with a stub arm at the elbow with a fearsome face. _Who's that?_ the kunoichi thought. _A friend of Kenshin-san's? He doesn't look very friendly, though . . ._

Kameko walked quickly to the doorway, but before she got there, the large man trudged away on his own path, with Kenshin staring after him, lost in thought. Kameko hesitated before saying, "Kenshin-san?"

"Oro!" Kenshin jumped with a start. "Oh, Kameko-dono, _konnichiwa_! _Hai_, all is well, it is." He smiled in assurance and stepped aside from the doorway, motioning for Kameko to go first. "Let us go inside; everyone is waiting, that they are."

A little voice in the back of Kameko's mind still nagged at her; something about that large man was off, and Kenshin seemed to pick up on it, too. Or was there more to the story? That faraway look in the rurouni's amethyst eyes . . . it was unsettling. Nevertheless, Kameko gave a small smile and went inside. "_Hai_, _arigatou_."

_Later that evening . . ._

"Ooh, fireflies!" Tsubame gasped.

"Why don't we sit a bit and cool off?" Tae suggested.

The group had been walking amongst the bits of golden glow ever since leaving the Akabeko after the party, a little ways out of the city of Tokyo. "Fine," Sano said shortly, and a small groan could be heard from behind him. "I'm tired of luggin' this drunk anyway."

Kaoru sweatdropped. "A horrifying sight . . ."

Kameko did the same. "Was it really okay to let Yahiko-kun drink that much at his age?"

"_HEY! Wha'ya shay!_" A couple of veins pulsed in Sano's forehead at Yahiko's sudden admittedly drunken outburst. "Who're ya callin' drunk, bird head!" Yahiko continued indignantly and solemnly as he could in his slurred tone, "Myoujin Yahiko is al'ays sober. Bring on arrows, guns, anythin'!"

"Tch." Sano rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah. I'm gonna put ya down now."

Everyone stopped at the top of a small hill, and Tae and Tsubame started going towards the fireflies. "Kaoru-chan, Kameko-chan, hurry over here!"

"Coming!" the two seventeen-year-olds chimed. Kaoru followed Tae and Tsubame immediately, but Kameko lingered a bit. Yahiko was stepping around in dizzy circles, wobbling unsteadily, but Kenshin looked reflective again, and Sano was watching him, too, looking like he wanted to say something. Deciding to let the ex-fighter-for-hire handle the rurouni by himself, Kameko followed Kaoru. Sure enough, she heard Sano beginning to talk in a low tone once the females were out of—well, supposed to be out of earshot. Kameko could still hear them but it was muffled enough to not be eavesdropping.

It had been no more than a minute before a sense of foreboding gripped Kameko's insides. _What's wrong? I don't hear any— _Her eyes widened in alarm and immediately after her initial reaction, an incredibly raucous explosion broke the night. Everyone's heads whipped around in fear. "Wh-what was that sound?" Kaoru asked worriedly.

"Fireworks?" Tae guessed.

Kenshin's eyes were wide as he realized, "_Iie_ . . . that unforgettable sound . . . that ripping of the air . . . one of the great weapons of the Bakumatsu . . . the Armstrong Cannon!"

Sanosuke and Kameko exchanged glances as the group rounded up and began walking back into the city. Ringing could be heard throughout Tokyo. "The sounding of the bells!" Kameko exclaimed. "So that thundering sound was . . ."

"The 'Armstrong Cannon' Kenshin-san talked about?" Tae looked worried. "Isn't that a bit too . . ."

"I'd say!" Tsubame piped up.

Kenshin, at the head of the group, turned around and smiled a bit. "This one may very well be wrong, he may . . . in fact, would that have been the case . . . let us look into it tomorrow. It is already late, that it is."

Kaoru smiled, too, tucking her hair behind her ear. "True . . . there's nothing to gain from thinking about it now."

"Yeah!" Yahiko and Sano chorused. "So let's go to Akabeko and have another round!"

Kameko sweatdropped as Kaoru scolded them with a glare, "Don't you ever quit? Now you're making me mad!"

Before anyone could say anything else, the pounding of footsteps could be heard getting ever louder. "Police—!" Kameko gasped.

"Oh!" A slender man with glasses and a mustache broke off from the running policemen. "Himura-san!"

"Long time no see, mustache," Sano said flatly, to which Kaoru elbowed him in the chest and didn't cause any discomfort at all.

"Chief, what is this?" Kenshin asked in concern.

"Didn't you hear that noise?" Chief Uramura panted. "It was cannon fire! Someone fired a shot at the town from Ueno-Yama! A restaurant called the Akabeko suffered a direct hit!" There was a collective gasp of shock from everyone. The police chief turned around, ready to catch up to his men. "We're surrounding the mountain with every officer in the region! There may be more shots, so watch yourselves!"

"This one is going to Ueno-Yama, that he is!" Kenshin shouted, running after the chief. "Everyone else back to the Akabeko!"

"Wait up, I'm goin', too!"

"I'm coming along, as well!"

"Me too!"

In the blink of an eye, Kameko, Yahiko, and Sanosuke were all running after Kenshin. Kameko could hear Kaoru calling for Yahiko to stay, but the ten-year-old boy ignored it and kept his speed. After a long while, it suddenly hit the kunoichi that Yahiko's presence had long been missing, but she didn't know where he was, so she hoped he would find his way back.

It was tiring, but endurance and adrenaline helped Kameko, Sano, and Kenshin scale Ueno-Yama and get to the top, where there was a large fallen tree surrounded by several police officers. The three bent down next to the stump. "Just one fallen holy tree . . ." Sano assessed, straightening up and shoving his hands in his pockets. "No sign of a cannon or its mount."

Kameko and Kenshin looked at an imprint in the ground. "_Iie_, look . . . this deep footprint.He probably propped his back against the tree to take the recoil . . . and fired with it over his shoulders, that he did," Kenshin said grimly.

"This looks like the footprint of a very large man . . ." Kameko began to get suspicious. "Almost like . . ."

Sano nodded, but Kameko wasn't sure if it was an answer. "So do ya think it was that whale mouth, Kenshin? He was a giant . . . bigger than Anji, even."

"Then . . . Kenshin-san, do you think this was the doing of the man at the Akabeko earlier today?" Kameko asked in confusion. "But . . ."

"Oh, right, we didn't tell Kame-chan about whale mouth." Sano paused, expecting Kenshin to say something, but the rurouni was deep in thought again. With a short sigh, Sano explained, "Basically, Kenshin's the one who cut off whale mouth's arm a really long time ago and Kenshin thinks whale mouth recognized him but didn't do anythin' about it and is out for revenge."

Kameko nodded, the shock of the statement wearing off quickly. "That would explain a few things . . ."

"But he only had one hand!" Sano mused, looking out over the mountain. "How could he hit the Akabeko from here in one shot?"

Kenshin's eyes narrowed. "He appeared at the Akabeko during the day . . . and the Akabeko was destroyed the same night, that it was. Can that be a coincidence?"

"Himura-san!" Sano, Kameko, and Kenshin looked over at Chief Uramura, who had a folded sheet of paper in his hand. "I found it! The criminal seems to have left a note!"

As the three gathered around the chief, he opened the paper to reveal a Japanese character. "_Jinchuu_ . . ." Kameko read, puzzled.

"I don't understand," the chief said.

"Did they mean to write _tenchuu_?" Sano asked.

". . . _Iie_ . . ." Sano and Kameko turned to look at Kenshin, whose eyes were narrowed yet again. "_Tenchuu_ means 'judgment from the heavens.' The _ishin-shishi_, more specifically the _hitokiri_, liked to use that word, that they did. It expressed their belief that justice lay in their hands."

"Then _jinchuu_ would mean . . ."

"'Even if the heavens will not cast judgment, then one's self will,'" Kenshin translated, frowning. "A completely opposite view of justice, that it is."

"So there are still samurai who are dissatisfied with the revolutionary government . . ." Chief Uramura refolded the sheet of paper and turned around. "There's no time to waste. I wish you all a good night."

". . . So it _is_ that man's doin'," Sano concluded.

Kenshin bent his head, his orange hair shielding his face. ". . . _Iie_. This is not just one man's doing, that it is most certainly not. The Armstrong Cannon isn't something an individual could acquire. There's no proof . . . but . . . this one, who has hurt and killed many, still unpunished by the heavens is trailed by avengers who seek to cast judgment with their own hands, that they do . . ."

Sano and Kameko looked at each other. "Kenshin . . ."

"Kenshin-san . . ."

A small sigh escaped the troubled rurouni's lips. "No need to worry, there is not."

**A/N: You all know where this is going, but there's going to be a few tweaks to the storyline, of course ;) Thanks for reading and please review! I'll do my best to update ASAP! :) I'm going to start doing translations again, so here you guys go:**

**_-chama_—a variation of –chan that can be used for affection but isn't often used**

**_Konnichiwa—_hello or good afternoon**

**_Arigatou_—thank you**

**_Obaa—_grandmother**

**_Otou_—father**

**_Ojii —_grandfather**

**_Onegai_—please**

**_Gomen—_sorry**

**_Ja ne_—bye**

**_Hai_—yes**

**_Iie_—no**

**_Ishin-shishi_—the patriots in the revolution**

**_Rurouni_—wanderer or vagabond**

**_Kunoichi_—a female ninja**

**_Hitokiri_—manslayer**


	3. The Warning

**A/N: Here's the third chapter everyone! The plot thickens . . . enjoy! ;) Special thanks to pokemonjkl, HellsingValentine28, saitou's lover, UneFilleFrancaise, rnn21, Kitsune Kiyoko, and Nyx'sBlackRose for reviewing the last chapter! :)**

**Tsubame: *blushes and fidgets* Um . . . _konnichiwa_, readers, Meerca-san would like to say that she doesn't own anything except Kameko-san and some of the plot . . .**

**Meerca: Arigatou, Tsubame-chan! ^^**

**Opposites Attract: The Jinchuu Arc**

**Chapter 3: The Warning**

The following afternoon, Kameko stopped outside the shoji to the room where Kenshin and Sanosuke were discussing with a tray of tea. She was debating about whether to barge in or not when the rurouni pulled the screen door aside and said warmly, "Come in, Kameko-dono, Sano and this one were expecting you, that we were. _Arigatou_ for making tea for us."

"You're welcome, Kenshin-san." Kameko smiled and went inside. Kenshin slid the shoji closed again as Sano greeted the kunoichi with his normal, "Hey, Kame-chan." Kameko put the cups of tea in front of their respective owners' seat. "So, what did the police find out?"

Kenshin sat before his cup of tea and raised it to his lips briefly before explaining, "In the end, the police concluded that no one had a grudge against the Akabeko, and it was probably just a misfiring of some secretly built cannon by rebel samurai, that they said."

"Pathetic!" Sano scoffed. "They're no use!"

"We can't blame them, though," Kameko remarked. "They don't know the situation."

"Yeah . . . the situation." Sano looked up at Kenshin, who'd closed his eyes in deep thought. "So whadda we do? Do we tell Jou-chan and the rest?"

"_Iie_ . . . better not," Kenshin replied as Sano and Kameko sipped their tea. "The battle in Kyoto raised many anxieties, that it did. There is no need to add to those yet. If this one's opponents are those who seek personal vengeance, they'll be able to muster more power than all the Juppongatana combined. We can't allow another crisis like the battle at the Aoi-Ya. Kaoru-dono and the others will be better off without knowing, that they will."

"True . . ." Sano agreed. "And it shouldn't be too hard to find these punks."

"_Hai_," Kameko nodded. "The only places you have anything to do with here in Tokyo, Kenshin-san, are here at the Kamiya Kasshin-ryuu, the Oguni Clinic, and the Akabeko, which is already gone."

Sano nodded, too. "Right. If the three of us split up, we can guard both places and a good chunk of Tokyo pretty well." He then rolled his eyes. "For once, your anti-social behavior pays off."

Kameko sweatdropped and Kenshin sighed, "An insult . . . but also quite true, it is."

"Shouldn't we still be worried about Tae-san and Tsubame-chan?" Kameko asked. "What if they're targeted again?"

"They should be fine for now, that they should. The Sekihara family are merchants, and smart ones. They didn't simply accept the police's opinion . . . they've hired their own security, they have. Tsubame-dono will be . . ."

Kenshin's eyes went wide, as did Kameko's a fraction of a second later. _Footsteps! It's Kaoru-chan!_

"Kenshin?"

"Shh! Hide the map!"

Sano looked around frantically and ended up stuffing it behind him, to which Kameko facepalmed. He barely hid it before Kaoru's voice could be heard outside and the shoji began sliding open. "Kenshin-I'm coming in."

Kenshin and Sano were both calmly sipping tea while Kameko sat there a bit awkwardly. She didn't know what, if anything, had tipped Kaoru off but the dojo master flatly asked, "Well? What was that map you just hid?"

The guilty trio looked calm on the outside but inside began panicking. "Wh-wh-why, nothing at all!" Kenshin chimed in a tone higher than normal. "It's always fun looking at maps, that it is!"

Kaoru didn't look convinced at all, her eyes narrowed as she said noncommittally. "Hmmmm."

"Really, Kaoru-chan!" Kameko hoped she sounded convincing enough. "I just came inside to give them tea, and they were talking about . . ." _Oh, no. They were talking about . . . ?_ "Talking about . . . _ano_ . . ."

"Kenshin's pullin' your leg," Sano sighed, sounding as if he had to do some tiring task. "Us two guys were talkin' 'bout hittin' the brothels later tonight."

"Oro!" Kenshin exclaimed, going swirly eyed.

Kameko's cheeks burned. "Oh my . . ."

A blush was now on Kaoru's face as well, but otherwise her expression remained the same. "Hmmmm. If you must. Just don't talk about things like that in front of Yahiko and Tsubame-chan!"

The normally docile rurouni was glaring daggers at Sanosuke, who was unfazed and glared right back.

"Oh yeah . . . about Tsubame-chan . . . your suggestion that she should recuperate at our place after the incident was agreed to by her family. They thanked you. She'll come over in the evening."

"Good," Kenshin smiled. "That's a relief."

Kaoru's eyebrow rose. "A relief?"

"Fool!" Sano punched Kenshin, who gave his customary 'oro' cry. Sano then stated, "I'm goin' to Megumi's. To get my hand treated."

"Right . . ." Kenshin smiled innocently. "Good luck."

Kameko adopted what she hoped was a similar look. "_Ja ne_, Sano."

"Later, Kame-chan, Kenshin, Jou-chan."

As Sano left, Kaoru still looked suspicious, but to Kameko and Kenshin's relief, she went away, presumably to train with Yahiko. "Phew . . ." Kenshin sighed, leaning against the shoji to make sure Kaoru was gone. "Kameko-dono, would you do this one a favor?"

"_Hai_, what is it?"

"Could you go out and check on the city, _onegai_? Sano has the Oguni Clinic covered, that he does, but this one would like to know if there isn't trouble anywhere else. Kaoru-dono and Yahiko would be very suspicious if this one left, that they would, so he would like to request you do it."

"You can count on me, Kenshin-san!" Kameko smiled.

Kenshin smiled as well. "_Arigatou_, Kameko-dono. By the way, is your new kunoichi outfit done?"

"_Hai_ . . . I did the best I could with what Megumi-san gave me." Kameko's previous kunoichi outfit had been burned and torn beyond repair during the battle with Shishio as well as the Deadly Sai, Cheng Li Hamato, who was one of the Ten Swords. Her old one was more of a traditional Japanese onmitsu design, but this new one, due to the limited amount of cloth, resembled a black one-piece 'swimsuit,' as the Westerners called them, but a lot more decent. "Kaoru-chan's been helping, too. It looks alright; I should be able to use it in case if something comes up."

"That's good, it is. _Arigatou_ again, Kameko-dono."

"It's nothing, Kenshin-san! I'll be back in an hour or so, _dewa mata_." Kameko gave a little wave and went to her room, where she retrieved a few shuriken to put inside her obi, in case she needed them. She made sure to tiptoe across the floor in front of the door to the dojo, but there were so much noise coming from within that it probably wasn't even necessary to do so. _There's some intense training going on in there,_ Kameko thought, hearing indiscernible shouts. _It's good to be prepared though, especially in case something happens._

Once Kameko was in the street, things calmed down quite a bit noise-wise, but there were a few police officers patrolling around despite the calm. Security had been tightened up since the destruction of the Akabeko, and even though Kenshin reported it had been written off as being fired by rebel samurai, he, Kameko, and Sanosuke knew the truth. That large man with the severed arm was likely out for revenge for Kenshin's deeds as Hitokiri Battousai. Same old story, but a different and possibly more dangerous foe. And the entire Kenshingumi would find out just how dangerous that night, in their own ways.

Everyone had called it a day; Sano was still guarding the Oguni Clinic while Kameko, Kaoru, and Yahiko went to their beds. Tsubame, who had arrived sometime in the afternoon while Kameko was out, followed suit. Kenshin slept in the room closest to the gate as a precaution, sitting against the wall with his beloved sakabatou at his side. Kameko, meanwhile, kept her own twin sakabatou at hand, as well as carefully stored a few shuriken under her pillow.

bang at the door of the closed front gate was enough to send Kameko and Kenshin running, a confused Yahiko and Kaoru hot on their trail. Kenshin's eyes were narrowed, hand at his sakabatou and ready to attack. Kameko held her shuriken between her fingers in a throwing stance.

"Kenshin!" Yahiko shouted, holding his bokken.

"That sound—"

Kaoru was cut off by Kenshin. "Shh! Stop there and back away. Kameko-dono—"

"Right," Kameko nodded, meaning to step forward when a weak, dying voice came from the other side of the door, to everyone's shock.

"P . . . please . . . open . . . hurry . . . or . . . Mae . . . kawa dojo will . . ."

Everyone gasped as Kenshin opened the door to the gate to reveal a heavily wounded and bleeding young man slumped against the gate. Kaoru and Kameko tore strips from their yukatas to try to help the bleeding while Yahiko demanded, "What happened! A dojo challenge?"

". . . N . . . no . . . from the beginning . . . he came to . . . kill . . ." The young man raised his arm, as if reaching out to Kenshin. "The . . . police . . . are no . . . match . . . they'll all . . . be killed . . ."

"Kenshin!" Kaoru cried as the rurouni whirled around at lightning speed.

"I'm com—"

"_Stay where you are!_" Kenshin shouted, looking back at a stunned Yahiko. "This one will return in the morning, that he will! Until then, lock up and don't let your guard down!"

"R-right . . ." Kaoru nodded, swallowing hard.

Kenshin's burning amethyst gaze then turned to Kameko. "Kameko-dono, the dojo is your responsibility, that it is!"

Kameko nodded firmly. "Go on ahead, Kenshin-san, I'll handle things here!"

Kenshin nodded, as well, then took off. Yahiko, meanwhile, clenched his fists and stood at the gate, but Kaoru and Kameko were too busy tending to the wounded man to notice.

"Th . . . thank y . . you . . ." Kameko could feel the wounded man's strength draining away and could only hope he'd last long enough to be taken to the Oguni Clinic later.

"Maybe we should bring him inside," Kaoru suggested. "We could give him water and—"

Kameko's eyes suddenly widened, to which Kaoru looked at her in alarm. _A presence . . . slight, but there is definitely a presence! Someone's here!_

"Kameko-chan? What—!"

In a fluid motion, Kameko leapt to her feet and whirled around, releasing the three shuriken between her fingers at rapid speed towards the roof. She wasn't surprised to see a shadow suddenly come into full view to catch the shuriken between his own fingers. "Oh, dear, I believe I've been caught." The mysterious man smiled. "I should have been more careful, but you're quite good, miss."

Kameko's eyes narrowed as she stepped in front of a shocked Kaoru. Another smiling mild-mannered assassin, just like Seta Soujirou. _These types are the hardest to read._ "What are you doing here?"

"I was simply looking around the famous Battousai's place," the man informed her, still smiling. "I did not mean any harm . . ." His sentence trailed off innocently, to which Kameko and Kaoru's eyes widened.

"_Tsubame-chan!_"

Kameko dashed towards the dojo, ready to deflect any projectiles, but to her surprise, none came. Even more surprising, little Tsubame was actually hiding behind one of the porch pillars, directly in the man's line of sight. However, he didn't lift a finger, and his smile grew wider.

"See, miss? I was telling you the honest truth. I'm not here to fight if Battousai is not here-not tonight, anyway. You will see me again in a few days' time. But before I take my leave . . . your name, miss?"

". . . Kichida Kameko," the kunoichi answered slowly.

"Kichida Kameko . . . I will remember that name." The man smiled and tipped his head towards her. "It would be rude to leave without giving my name as well. Kikuchi Izanagi; a pleasure, Miss Kameko. Until another day, farewell."

With that, Kikuchi Izanagi faded into the darkness of the night. Kameko stared after him. _So . . . it's starting . . . whatever this is. There's still so much to this mystery . . . I wonder what's _really_ going on? We'll just have to wait and see . . ._

Kameko turned around to face Kaoru, Tsubame running to her side. Both looked extremely worried. "There's someone else after Kenshin now . . . we have to tell him when he gets home!"

"_Hai_," Kameko agreed. "But let's wait for him inside and help this poor man first . . ."_ Kenshin-san might be gone for a while,_ Kameko added silently. She and Kaoru each took one of the groaning man's arms and supported him with their shoulders, ready to haul him inside.

"Wait!" Tsubame turned towards the gate and called softly, "Yahiko-kun?"

The boy didn't reply, so Kameko then tried herself. "Yahiko-kun? We can go back to sleep now, let's go inside."

Again Yahiko ignored her, and Kaoru sighed exasperatedly. "Yahiko! Stop being disrespectful and listen—"

"Okay, okay!" Yahiko yelled, but then said in a barely audible tone. "You guys can go ahead. I'll be there in a few minutes."

Kaoru and Kameko looked at one another and shrugged before making their way inside. Tsubame had fallen asleep in their room a little while after offering to help, and they let the little girl sleep undisturbed. Kaoru and Kameko tended to the wounded man diligently throughout the entire long night, taking turns sleeping and staying up. The night was restless, but that would be nothing compared to what would happen the following morning.

**A/N: Dun dun DUUUUUN! Well, it's not that suspenseful since most of you guys already know what happens ;) Here are the new Japanese words for this chapter:**

**_Ano_—um**

**_Dewa mata—_see you later**

**Hope you liked the chapter, please review lots guys! I'll update in a week, more or less :)**


	4. Revealing the Truth

**A/N: Hey everyone, and so the Jinchuu Arc begins to roll! Thanks to all the reviewers: pokemonjkl, CrazyCreator33, Sleepyreader319, saitou's lover, Airheadninja, and UneFilleFrancaise! Love you guys! ^^**

**Misao: Meerca-san doesn't own anything except a few parts of the plot and her OC! *to Meerca* How was that, Meerca-san?**

**Meerca: Good, Misao-chan, arigatou! ^^**

**Opposites Attract: The Jinchuu Arc**

**Chapter 4: Revealing the Truth**

The following morning, Dr. Genzai arrived to take the thankfully still-alive man to the Oguni Clinic for proper treatment, Sanosuke and Megumi tailing him. They stayed while he left. "Kenshin's not back yet?" Sano asked.

Kaoru and Kameko shook their heads. "_Iie_."

"Hmph, I even brought him the 'medicine box,'" Sano remarked, glancing sideways at an irritated Megumi.

"Would it kill you to express a little gratitude—for all the _care_ I've been giving you?" The beautiful doctor glared back, tucking some of her long ebony hair behind her ear.

"Well, I guess we don't need to worry," Sano continued, pointedly ignoring Megumi. "I think he's invincible anyway."

"Then you're a fool," Megumi said in annoyance.

"Oh, yeah. I brought home a trophy."

"Huh?"

"A trophy, Sano?"

"Take a look."

Sano jabbed his thumb at the fence, and Kameko was alarmed and confused by the large . . . thing slumped against it. _It looks like that . . . Iwanbou! From the Juppongatana . . . but how did Sano get his hands on him? Iwanbou was in Kyoto last the others saw him . . ._ "But . . . isn't he one of the Juppongatana?" Kameko asked, confused.

"I think so. He sure matches the descriptions." Sano stroked his chin thoughtfully. "Which means Shishio's mean are involved, or maybe that this foe was involved with Shishio . . ."

Kameko's eyes widened in panic. "_Ano_, Sano, you probably shouldn't—"

"'_This foe_'?" Kameko's warning was too late; the ex-fighter-for-hire had already said too much and it was enough for Megumi's fox ears to pop up. "Then all this trouble . . . _isn't_ coincidental, is it?" Sano gulped, realizing his mistake.

"You know something!" Megumi swung at Sano with her medicine box, who brought up his left arm in time to block the blows. "Spit it out, _tori-atama_!"

"No fair!" Sano shouted. "You know I can't use my right hand!"

Kameko sweatdropped and made fleeting eye contact with Kaoru, who had also sweatdropped but was eyeing the kunoichi suspiciously. Once the fox assault on Sano was over, Kaoru looked between him and Kameko with a slight pout. "Sanosuke, Kameko-chan . . ."

Sano and Kameko exchanged glances and sighed simultaneously. "I didn't think we'd be able to keep this secret for too long," Kameko remarked.

"Me either," Sano agreed. "All right, guess we got no choice. When Kenshin comes back—"

"Kaoru-san!" Tsubame came running into the backyard, gasping. "It's Kenshin-san! Kenshin-san is back!" The little girl's brown eyes were filled with worry. "But . . . but . . ."

Kenshin came walking into the backyard at that moment, but everyone gasped at the sight of him. The blood from minor wounds was to be expected on his tattered hakama, but it was the dejected way he was carrying himself and the anguished look of his eyes that instantly alarmed the other five. He bowed his head as he came closer, his long orange hair falling around his gaunt face hiding those frighteningly sorrowful eyes.

_Kenshin-san . . . what happened to him?_ Kameko thought worriedly, feeling pain in the rurouni's _chi_ as well.

"Kenshin—"

Sano started to call out to the distressed rurouni, but Kaoru stopped him and stepped forward. "Welcome home! You seem tired. Would you like to sleep . . . ?"

". . . _Hai_," Kenshin answered quietly, slowly walking away from the rest of the group.

". . . He's completely dazed . . ." Megumi looked confused.

"That ain't normal," Sano added.

"What happened . . . ?" Kameko wondered aloud.

"Kaoru-san, didn't you want to ask him what's happening . . . ?" Tsubame piped up.

". . . I can't ask him." Kaoru looked at the ground in sadness. "This is the first time I've seen Kenshin suffering so much . . ."

_Late that afternoon . . ._

"See? You're depending too much on the _blade_!"

"_So?_"

"The secret to Kamiya Kasshin-ryuu is in the hilt! Master the _hilt_!"

"_I am!_"

Kameko could hear Kaoru and Yahiko's banter from outside, even with the door closed. She shook her head with a smile and kept practicing herself; she'd decided to practice outside to see if anything was amiss, with everyone else inside.

"Oh . . . Kenshin-san!"

Kameko heard Tsubame's little voice over the din of sensei and student and stopped training immediately to slide open the door; indeed, the redheaded rurouni was standing in the opposite doorway.

"Tsubame-chan, take over," Kaoru ordered to a stiffening Tsubame, handing her the bokken. "Yahiko, one hundred hits with your hilt."

"Why!" Yahiko exploded, but Kaoru had already moved on to Kenshin and began talking to him.

Kameko approached the frightened little girl and smiled at her. "Here, let me do it instead, Tsubame-chan."

Tsubame smiled at her and gratefully gave up the bokken with a tiny, "_Arigatou_."

"Okay, Yahiko-kun, let's go," Kameko nodded, holding one end of the bokken in one hand and the other end flat against her other palm. Yahiko nodded, as well, and started to strike with the hilt, turning his anger into sheer force and speed. Kameko was a bit surprised, but then again, the kid never stopped doing that to her; for a ten-year-old, Yahiko was an exceptional warrior, and he had much potential in the future.

It didn't take Yahiko too long to finish the hundred strikes—Kameko had counted—and he calmed down, panting. The kunoichi smiled and patted his head. "Good job, Yahiko-kun. You'll get the hang of it in no time."

Yahiko grinned, pleased, and he and Kameko both looked at Kaoru for instruction. They were surprised to find Kenshin holding the dojo master's wrist.

"Kenshin . . . ?"

"That sweat . . ." Kenshin looked to Yahiko and Kameko. "That wound . . ." He looked to Sanosuke. "And this warmth are not illusions, they're all real, that they are." The rurouni met Kaoru's eyes briefly before continuing. "There is something you all need to hear, you do. About the current battle . . . and its beginnings."

It took a little while for everyone to get ready to settle in the yard, and darkness began setting in over the sky. "This morning . . . while this one was returning home, a declaration of war was made by the mastermind of these incidents. Ten days from now, Kamiya dojo will be under attack, that it will. The mastermind is Yukishiro Enishi." Kenshin looked at the earth beneath his feet, again hiding his pain-filled eyes. "This one's brother."

". . . Brother?" everyone echoed, but before that could even settle in, Kenshin dropped the real bombshell, and no one could have prepared for it.

"More accurately—brother-in-law. The brother of Himura Tomoe, this one's wife, who was killed with these very hands, that she was."

Kameko was in absolute shock, and she couldn't bring herself to see what Kaoru looked like. _Kenshin-san was . . . he was . . . married before . . . and he . . . killed his wife? How . . . ?_

"It is a story of the Bakumatsu, that it is . . . the story of the pain that carved this cross-shaped scar."

**A/N: Sorry, kind of a short one this time, but I hope you guys liked it anyway :P I'll probably be MIA for a few days because of a big project I have due, but I'll try updating ASAP! Translations:**

**_Iie_—no**

**_Ano_—um**

**_Tori-atama_—bird head, or as we love to call him, Sano ;)**

**_Hai_—yes**

**Review lots please guys! :)**


	5. The Tragedies of a Hitokiri

**A/N: These past days have been stressful, sleep-depriving, and schoolwork filled, since freshman year's coming to an end :P So I'm sorry for not updating fast guys! As much as I love my fanfics, I have to focus on school :P So please bear with me these couple weeks when it comes to updates! After that I'll be on summer break, so I'll update weekly, maybe even bi-weekly!**

**BTW this might be a slightly boring chapter. I had to recount a lot of Kenshin's past to make the story flow, and I think it still sounds choppy because of how much I took out :\ Apologies again *bows***

**EDIT: Eep I forgot to thank chapter 4's reviewers! Apologies guys, let me do it right now ^^ So HUGE shoutouts to Sleepyreader319, CrazyCreator33, Nyx'sBlackRose, UneFilleFrancaise, saitou's lover, Bonnia, and pokemonjkl!**

**Aoshi: She doesn't own anything.**

**Meerca: o_o' . . . ano, arigatou, Aoshi-ch—I mean, Aoshi-sama.**

**Opposites Attract: The Jinchuu Arc**

**Chapter 5: The Tragedies of a Hitokiri**

And thus, Kenshin began his story.

It began in Kyoto, years ago in the Genji era, when Hitokiri Battousai patrolled the streets. One fateful night, the Choshuu _ishin-shishi_ hitokiri came across three men: an Ishiji, a Shigekura, and a Kiyosato Akira. After killing the first two men, Battousai was left in a duel with Kiyosato, whom he dispatched of but Kiyosato did manage to slash a straight wound along the assassin's cheek; his will to live was fierce, but not enough.

Katsura Kogorou and Takasugi Shinsaku were the men Battousai worked under, after he had been discovered as a young prodigy by them years before. Katsura asked Battousai to fight the Shinsengumi, but he declined and went for a drink, noting how everything around him seemed to smell and taste like the blood of the countless he'd slaughtered.

A woman with onyx black hair in a low ponytail and dark eyes wearing a simple white kimono and a lavender shawl walked into the tavern, attracting the attention of many drunk men. They approached her, demanding for her to pour sake for them, but Battousai stopped them and the men left.

Later that night, as Battousai roamed the streets, one of the men from the tavern was running towards him in fear, only to have a sword burst across his mouth. A muscular man dressed in a black outfit with a chain and a katana faced the hitokiri—a Shogunate spy. Battousai defeated him, then heard footsteps behind him; it was the young woman from before, splattered with the spy's blood. After talking for a bit, she fainted, and Battousai brought her back to his place. Her scent of _hakubaikou_—white plum blossoms—was unsettling.

The next morning, Battousai found the woman—Yukishiro Tomoe—helping the elderly woman running the hotel, as well as attracting the attention of the other men there. Katsura informed the hitokiri of a traitor amongst them, and to keep his guard up. Meanwhile, Tomoe was there to stay, to Battousai's annoyance.

Two weeks later, Tomoe still did housework around the hotel, and Battousai was told of a new plot to foil. He killed the men involved and came back, only to have Tomoe questioning him about how he would keep killing forever. Meanwhile, Katsura told Tomoe what he and Battousai were doing while the hitokiri was out.

Battousai was sleeping one day and Tomoe tried to put a blanket over him, but it instead woke him up in alarm and pressed his blade to the woman's throat. Battousai realized it was Tomoe and drew back, mortified. Tomoe talked to him about what he was going to do about his suspicions and killing, but it wasn't that which Battousai was thinking about. His feelings for Tomoe were becoming clear as he promised to never kill her.

On the night of the Gion Festival, Battousai slept while Tomoe sewed in the same room. Takasugi entered, wanting to go out and have a good time, but was surprised to find Battousai sleeping in a room with someone's presence. Takasugi thought about it a bit, but his pensiveness was cut short when a man called Katagi alerted him and Battousai that Ikeda Inn was attacked by the Wolf of Mibu and the Shinsengumi. Battousai tried to go there, but Takasugi told him it was no use because it was too late. The Shinsengumi had come back, and had no intention of leaving.

Takasugi was in jail with a lung disease while Katsura went into hiding, instructing Battousai to remain hidden, as well, until the next decision. He also suggested Tomoe live with Battousai so they would fit under the guise of a young married couple, whether fake or real. Once Katsura left, Battousai realized his true feelings for Tomoe, and when she asked him about what they were going to do, he told her that they were going to stay together.

In the late summer of that year, fifteen-year-old Hitokiri Himura Battousai and eighteen-year-old Yukishiro Tomoe were wed.

_Present_

Kenshin's eyes were still fixated at the ground beneath him, and the group was completely quiet, soaking in all the information. Kameko's head was still spinning as she tried to grasp the concept. _It's so unbelievable . . . this is Kenshin-san we're talking about here!_

Finally, Megumi broke the silence. ". . . Ken-san?"

Kenshin sighed quietly, closing his eyes. "Let's rest awhile . . ."

". . . Yeah, all right," Sanosuke agreed slowly. "You've been talkin' for three hours straight now."

There was another awkward silence in which no one moved a muscle, and Megumi, Sano, Kameko, and Yahiko sweatdropped. Then Tsubame piped up, "_Ano_ . . . I'll go make some more tea."

"You've been doing a lot, Tsubame-chan." Kameko smiled a little at the little girl and stood. "I'll help."

"Me, too," Megumi chimed in, standing as well.

Tsubame looked startled. "Oh. _Arigatou gozaimasu_."

Sano scratched the back of his head. "Yeah, well, I'll go make some snacks or somethin'. I'm startin' to get a li'l hungry."

"_Hey!_" Yahiko peered suspiciously at the ex-fighter-for-hire. "How do _you_ know where our snack cabinet is?"

Kameko glanced at Kaoru before going inside; she hadn't moved and it didn't look like she was going to follow the rest of them, either. In fact, she looked almost as depressed as Kenshin. Kameko sighed quietly and went inside with everyone else.

Tsubame and Kameko put the kettle on the stove while Megumi got cups and Yahiko and Sano got snacks. ". . . I was surprised to hear Kenshin-san was a hitokiri," Tsubame remarked.

"Yeah? You didn't know about Battousai?" Yahiko asked her in surprise, and Tsubame shook her head. "_I'm_ surprised to hear he was married! And at fifteen!"

"_Hai_, me too," Kameko agreed.

"Not me," Sano said, looking back at Yahiko and Kameko.

"But isn't fifteen too young?" Kameko asked, puzzled.

"Nope." Sano shook his head. "You two are a bit young to know about it, but back then a samurai came of age at fifteen."

"Really?" Yahiko asked.

"A ceremony called _genpuku_." Sano glanced at Yahiko. "If you plan on bein' a swordsman, remember it. And eighteen was actually kinda old to get married back then . . . mm?"

". . . Are you trying to say something?" Megumi asked in annoyance.

"Not a thing," Sano said seriously.

"Such things should be up to the individual!" Megumi ran her fingers through her silky black hair like a comb. "Why should anyone else have an opinion on it?"

Yahiko, Tsubame, and Kameko looked on in confusion. "M-Megumi-san?"

"I said, 'not a thing,'" Sano deadpanned. The beautiful doctor didn't hear him, so he rolled his eyes and went on, "Still . . . I can't see it yet."

Megumi listened that time, as did Tsubame and Kameko. An oblivious Yahiko questioned, "What?"

"Me either," Kameko answered.

"True," Tsubame agreed.

"So you think so, too?" Megumi asked.

"Hey!" Yahiko trilled. "Don't ignore me!"

"Yukishiro, or Himura . . . Tomoe . . ." Everyone turned to Megumi. "It's the middle of the story, so we can't know yet . . . but her background . . . her identity, even her thoughts are such mysteries. I have to wonder whether she really loved Ken-san or not."

"But she must have," Tsubame piped up. "How could you marry someone you don't even love?"

"It's rare, Tsubame-chan, but . . . it does happen, sometimes," Kameko replied. "Fate can work in cruel ways like that."

"I can't believe that Kenshin ended up killing her," Yahiko frowned. "No matter what happens . . . your own wife . . ."

"_Ano_ . . . shall we head back?" Tsubame suggested. "I'm worried about Kaoru-san . . ."

"_Hai_, I am, too."

"Mm. Good point."

"I'll never forgive her if she lets something like this break her," Megumi said to herself quietly.

"Huh?"

"Never mind." Megumi shook her head, picking up the tray of steaming tea cups and snacks. "Let's go back."

The group went back outside, giving a cup of tea to everyone, though Kenshin didn't move to touch his. After a five minute silence, Sano said, "So let's hear it."

Kenshin remained silent, and Kameko was surprised that Kaoru was the next to speak up. ". . . Kenshin . . ." The dojo master looked up firmly. "Please . . . tell us the rest."

Kenshin's eyes opened a little. ". . . All right. Let's continue . . ."

Life for Battousai and Tomoe was relatively peaceful. The nearby children would often come to play, but Tomoe's generally unsmiling face made them prefer Battousai to her. However, Battousai had been smiling a lot more in the five months he and Tomoe had been wed.

One day, while Battousai was playing with the children, a black-haired boy who hadn't been there before came. When one of the boys went up to him to ask him to play with them, the black-haired boy punched him. Battousai ran over, only to be bitten on the hand. Tomoe came outside and called the boy's name, Enishi, and he suddenly brightened and called her nee-chan. It turned out Enishi was Tomoe's younger brother, who didn't like Battousai very much.

Battousai left Tomoe and Enishi to catch up, pondering about how Enishi knew where their home was; only Katsura and Iiozuka, another _ishin-shishi_ member, knew of its whereabouts. He briefly wondered whether Tomoe had told Enishi, but doubted it.

Enishi came out of the Himura home in a bad mood, his face showing pure hatred for Battousai. He went back inside, and he and Tomoe began talking about her past, in which Tomoe reveals she had an arranged marriage before her current one. She had thought liked the man very much, but when she opened her eyes, she wasn't happy. Tomoe's fiancé went to Kyoto to fight, only to never return, and neither would her happiness. Battousai comforted Tomoe, and then began telling her about his own past. He claimed he wouldn't kill once the new era was ushered in, and would only use his sword to protect.

The next morning, Battousai found Tomoe gone, a letter taking her place; Tomoe had been captured. He went to the forest mentioned in the letter, but something about it bothered him. Almost immediately, Battousai was ambushed, and the black-clothed man struck his shoulder, announcing in triumph that the forest blocked a swordsman's sixth sense, allowing only the Yaminobu group to be able to use it normally. However, this didn't faze Battousai one bit, and he struck fast, threatening to kill the man if he didn't take him to Tomoe.

The man seemed to be shocked for a few moments, but then he shot a sharpened cylinder into Battousai's shoulder with a strange gadget around his wrist. All Battousai did was pull it out and raise his sword, severing the man's two arms at the elbows. The man screamed in pain and ran off, only to find his severed arms before him. Battousai offered him another warning, but the stubborn man kicked a barrel of explosives at him, blowing himself up but Battousai managed to get away.

Battousai quickly realized the explosion was meant to mess with his hearing, throwing the volume and direction off. He was then confronted by another man dressed similarly to the previous. When dodging chunks of tree trunks, another figure with a strange mask leered at him. As they battled, two against one, the strange long-armed man stabbed Battousai's back with his claws, while the other larger man threw a tree trunk at his face.

Still, Battousai wasn't fazed. Moving with lightning speed, he severed the larger man's legs, but the long-armed man stabbed him again. Not biting his taunts, Battousai used his speed again to plan his sword in the palm of the claws. After trying to tug it out, the strange man tore his hand away, explaining in rage of how the claws had been passed down in a clan.

Battousai interrogated the man whose legs he'd cut off, and he surprisingly willingly told him where Tomoe was—except he also blew up another barrel, this time to temper with Battousai's sight. He knew he could wait for his senses to return to normal, but Tomoe was in trouble, and that kept him going. He arrived at a hut, where he also met an elderly-looking man, probably the leader of the Yaminobu group. The man boasted of his power and challenged Battousai, while Tomoe regained consciousness inside the hut.

The man battled with a devastatingly brutal _Muteki Ryuu_ style, cracking Battousai's neck, but his devotion to Tomoe was overcoming everything that was being thrown at him. Despite his fighting spirit, however, Battousai's loss of half of his senses, more than half now that his sense of touch had gone due to numbness of excessive blood loss and freezing wind, started to take its toll on him. Battousai realized he would have to kill the man; it was the only way to rescue Tomoe.

Battousai charged, katana high in the air, ready for a lethal blow. The split second before it connected, he smelled something frighteningly familiar, but it was too late as he followed through with his deadly strike—_hakubaikou_, white plum blossoms . . . Tomoe.

Battousai fell to his knees, tears falling from his amber eyes as he held Tomoe close to him, repeating the same word: why? Tomoe reached up to touch his cheek, where he realized another cut had crossed over the previous scar, and smiled, though tears sparkled at the corners of her eyes. She told him not to cry, and closed her eyes a final time.

Battousai shouted his wife's name, but she had already given in. He loathed how unfair it was for her to die and not him, the hitokiri. All he could do was hold her body there, in the cold falling snow, and cry.

Katsura came to know of the news and saw the hut for himself. A severely broken Battousai kneeled in front of the fireplace inside, and all he could think was why? Why did it happen?

A cold wind blew inside from the window, fluttering the pages of Tomoe's open diary. Battousai's curiosity was piqued at the brushstrokes of kanji, and he lifted it into his hands, reading an entry about Tomoe's former fiancé: Kiyosato Akira. To his immense surprise, he realized Kiyosato was the young man he had killed in Kyoto; _he_ had killed Tomoe's fiancé! And the name he was uttering before he died . . . it was Tomoe!

Katsura entered then, saying how the two circumstances were unfortunately linked; Battousai killing Kiyosato and falling in love with his former fiancée, Tomoe. Katsura also informed him that someone had been sent out to take care of the traitor, Iiozuka. That second hitokiri, as Battousai soon found out, was none other than Shishio Makoto. Shishio had taken over Battousai's job of assassinations, while Battousai was to protect loyalists in Kyoto, who were being killed by the Shinsengumi. Katsura asked him to raise his sword again, but Battousai was interrupted by children at the door, asking to play. Katsura was about to ask them to come later when Battousai gave his answer; he would do it. But in the new era caused by the bloodshed of his sword, he would give it up—or at least, never kill anyone, ever again.

Battousai went to the children, who immediately began asking where Tomoe was. He told them she had gone far away and wasn't coming back, and the children assumed he meant a divorce, which he left it at. That also meant Battousai was going far away, which the children realized, to he promised to play with them until sundown.

And thus, Battousai's legacy traveled to Kyoto, where he clashed with the Shinsengumi, especially the captain of the third squad, Saitou Hajime, and his special sword attack, the Gatotsu. Takasugi Shinsaku was considered a great war hero, though he died of illnesses. The Shinsengumi continued to fight, even after Saitou was sent back to Aizu to calm the Seinan War, and disappeared after the Hakodate War. Then was the climax at the war of Tobafushimi, in which the shogun army retreated; finally, a winner had been declared.

Battousai was relieved, then shocked to find a boy who looked unsettlingly familiar—Enishi. The same look of pure hatred was there, but this time, it was darker—evil, almost. But his hair was quite the opposite; once jet black, now snow white. Battousai called Enishi's name, but the boy left before he could do much else.

Later, Katsura Kogorou fell victim to brain disease and passed, as Saigo Takamori took his place in the Seinan War. Then, a year later, the battle between Shishio Makoto and the previous Battousai, Himura Kenshin, was staged, but most likely it would never be remembered in history. And now, two months later . . .

Everyone was silent; truly, there were no words to be said. Kameko noticed how late it was, as did everyone else it seemed, and one by one, each of them headed to their futons.

_Late that night . . ._

Kameko just couldn't sleep. She doubted anyone in her room was asleep, as well—Megumi, Tsubame, and especially Kaoru—but the silence seemed too appropriate to break.

After debating with herself, the kunoichi tossed aside her covers and somersaulted to the other side of the room, where the shoji to the hall was. No one did anything to stop her, so she just went outside.

Kameko wasn't too surprised to see Sano's figure outlined in the darkness; no one in the dojo seemed to be tired, despite their long day. "_Konbanwa_, Sano," she greeted quietly, glad for someone she could possibly talk to.

"Isn't it kinda late for you to be sayin' that, Kame-chan?" Sanosuke managed to crack a halfhearted grin as Kameko slid over beside him. "Anyone asleep in there?" He jabbed his thumb behind him, at the house.

"_Iie_, I doubt it," Kameko answered, shaking her head. "I think Yahiko-kun's awake somewhere, too."

Sano's voice got more serious and quiet. "Ya know, I'm still havin' a hard time believin' all this crap. So much of it in a single day. The fight in ten—well, probably nine now—days plotted by none other than Kenshin's own brother-in-law, Kenshin was married to someone before, he accidentally _killed_ the woman he married . . . damn crazy."

"_Hai_ . . . I mean no disrespect to Yukishiro-san . . . Himura-san . . . _ano_,Tomoe-san . . . at all, but poor Kaoru-chan. I can't even begin to imagine how much this must have impacted her."

"Yeah, Jou-chan's probly gotten hit the hardest," Sano agreed. "I'm also thinkin' 'bout that kid, Enishi . . ."

"What about him?"

"Nothin' much, just . . . he saw his big sis get killed in the worst perspective possible, specially since he was just a kid when it happened. Even though he's all grown up, I doubt that he knows what really happened, and I doubt he ever'll accept it. He's blinded by his revenge now, and it looks like he's rounded up some bums who're after Kenshin, too, to help him. We already know there're at least four of 'em, maybe five—" Sano began counting them off on his fingers. "The knucklehead I fought, the Kikuchi Izanagi guy you saw here, the weird-as-hell crossdresser Kenshin fought, and the boss himself . . . maybe there's even a dude who has somethin' to do with the Iwanbou thing I brought this morning."

"Maybe . . . and who knows how many more of them there are?" Kameko looked up at the ex-fighter-for-hire. "Speaking of the fight . . . Sano, what are _you_ going to do? Megumi-san said your right hand wouldn't be ready in ten days . . ."

Sano grinned a little and ruffled Kameko's brown hair, which was fluttering freely in the slight night breeze, down from its ponytail. "Hey, don't you worry 'bout me, Kame-chan. Ya know me, I always find a way."

"Well . . . most of the time."

"Tch, yeah, whatever." Sano looked up at the twinkling inky sky. "But don't worry . . . I'll figure somethin' out."

**A/N: Ahh barely any dialogue! Sorry it must have been boring, so that's why I added some Sano/Kameko interaction at the end! :D LOL so thanks for reading, please review lots! :) I'll try updating ASAP. Translations:**

**_Ishin-shishi—_the patriots in the war**

**_Hitokiri_—manslayer**

**_Ano_—um**

**_Arigatou gozaimasu_—thank you very much**

**_Hai_—yes**

**_Nee-chan_—a less formal way to address one's older sister EDIT: Sorry guys, nee-chan isn't a way you would address one's younger sister! Thanks to D-grayhitman Reborn for pointing that out! ;)**

**_Konbanwa_—good evening**

**_Iie_—no**


	6. Closer

**A/N: School's drawing ever closer to its end, and I actually have mixed feelings about it :P But at least I have more time to write! :) Enjoy chapter 6 guys! Huge thank-you's go out to Nyx'sBlackRose, saitou's lover, D-grayhitman Reborn, UneFilleFrancaise, and Bonnia for reviewing the previous chapter! :)**

**Hiko: The girl owns nothing - obviously, not me! *poses***

**Meerca: Haha, arigatou, Hiko-san . . . ^^'**

**Opposites Attract: The Jinchuu Arc**

**Chapter 6: Closer**

The next day was about as normal as a day could get for the Kenshingumi. Despite the relatively sleepless night, everyone was awake at the same time as usual. Kameko, Megumi, and Tsubame managed to convince Kaoru not to cook and made lunch themselves. Kaoru, Megumi, and Tsubame then went out back to see if Kenshin was awake.

The kunoichi smiled upon going outside; Sanosuke was fast asleep on the porch, snoring softly with a fishbone dangling out of his mouth. _Only Sano . . ._ She made sure to set down the tray she was holding gently and sat down to watch Yahiko go through his new training regimen.

"FIVE—THOUSAND!" Yahiko gasped out, sweating profusely and pumping his fist. "All right! Now! Only five thousand left!"

Kaoru came into the yard, flanked by Megumi and Tsubame on either side of her. "You're already halfway done with your assignment?"

"Yeah!"

"That's great!" Kaoru beamed. "Factoring in your enthusiasm, I'll cut you a break and make your remainder only seven thousand!"

Kameko stifled a giggle as Yahiko cheered, "All right!" and then, "Wait, it's gone up!"

"Time for lunch!" Kaoru turned her back on Yahiko while Tsubame looked between student and master, flustered. "Hey, Sanosuke, wake up."

Sano was unresponsive and continued to snore. Kameko then tried, "Sano, it's time for food!" She stood and gently shook his shoulder. "Sano, wake up . . ."

"You don't want the miso soup I made?" Kaoru asked in a hurt voice, and Kameko decided to leave the question open as she continued to gently shake Sano's shoulder. _Is he ignoring us or in that deep of a slumber?_

"Excuse me." Megumi suddenly appeared between the two seventeen-year-olds. In a matter-of-fact way, the doctor opened the lid of the miso soup bowl Kaoru carried, ladled some into a spoon, pinched Sano's nose closed, and poured the soup into his mouth.

It took less than ten seconds for Sano to cough and sit up straight, fishbone flying out of his mouth. "Who the hell tried to poison me! The enemy?"

Kameko and Megumi managed to keep straight faces as Kaoru cried indignantly, "Sanosuke! Megumi-san! Stop it!"

Kameko gave herself the liberty of grinning, then noticed a new presence in the yard; Kenshin had wandered over to the hubbub, watching it passively. "_Ohayou gozaimasu_, Kenshin-san," Kameko greeted brightly.

The rurouni seemed startled for a few moments, and then a hint of a smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. "_Ohayou gozaimasu_, Kameko-dono."

"Got here just in time, Kenshin!" Sano greeted. "We were right about to start lunch."

The Kenshingumi went inside, setting up the eating trays and dividing up the food. Once they had settled down, Sano grinned and remarked, "Well, I was real startled. I really thought I was bein' poisoned . . ."

"Will you give it a rest already?" Kaoru snapped.

"I'm starving!" Yahiko's rice bowl was lifted high and his chopsticks moved at lightning speed, shoveling rice into his mouth. He then extended his bowl forcefully. "More! More! More! Mo—"

"Calm down!" Yahiko's face met the wooden lid of the rice container. "Then eat!"

". . . What an amazingly fierce appetite," Tsubame said in wonder.

"They say eating is the source of health," Megumi smiled. "Especially for his age."

"Then Yahiko-kun has nothing to worry about!" Kameko laughed.

"Kenshin . . . ?" Kaoru looked at the rurouni, who had barely begun eating, and he didn't answer; he seemed to be deep in thought.

"Mo . . . ore!" Yahiko shouted.

Kaoru sweatdropped. "Sheesh . . ."

"Kaoru-dono." Everyone looked up at Kenshin, surprised to hear his voice. "Some for this one also, _onegai_."

Kaoru smiled and took the offered bowl from Kenshin. "Okay."

"MORE!" Yahiko roared.

The smile on Kaoru's face disappeared. "That's enough!"

Finally, the Kenshingumi ate their way through all of the food, most of it through the help of Sanosuke and Yahiko.

"Phew, that hit the spot!" Sano contentedly held his stomach. "We've had too many depressin' things goin' on lately. I feel revived for a change!"

"I just hope nothing happens in nine days . . ." Tsubame murmured, catching the group's attention. "Can't we prevent the fighting . . . by talking . . . ?"

Kameko smiled sadly. "I get why you would feel that way, Tsubame-chan, but I don't think it's possible. At this point, the only one who could stop Yukishiro Enishi-san would be Tomoe-san."

"Unfortunately, she is dead," Megumi continued. "Only her words will reach Yukishiro Enishi's ears."

"Kenshin!" Kaoru suddenly exclaimed. "Where is . . . where's Tomoe-san's diary?"

Kameko realized what Kaoru was getting at. _That's right! Tomoe-san's diary contains her words . . . they might be enough to stop her brother!_

". . . The diary was left by this one at the temple where Tomoe's grave is upon leaving Kyoto after the Battle of Toba-Fushimi, that it was."

_That's in Kyoto though . . . there's no way any of us could go there and come back in time,_ Kameko thought. _Megumi-san has patients, Yahiko-kun and Tsubame-chan are too young, Sano, Kenshin-san, Kaoru-chan, and I need to be ready for the fight . . . I guess we'll have to give up on that idea. It was a good one, but there's no one to . . . no, wait a second . . . the Oniwabanshuu!_

"Kaoru-chan!"

"Kameko-chan!"

The two seventeen-year-old young women had called out one another's names at the same time, and they nodded simultaneously as everyone else looked on in confusion. _Misao-chan or Aoshi-san or another member of the Oniwabanshuu could get us Tomoe-san's diary! Hopefully they can do it and make it in time . . ._

_Nine days later . . ._

"Please, Sanosuke? _Pretty please?_"

"No, dammit! For the last time."

"Why not?"

"I don't feel like it! Let me nap in peace, why don't ya!"

"_Ugh!_ You lazy good-for-nothing freeloader bum! I should just kick you out!"

"Pfft, I'd like to see ya try."

Kameko had just finished her morning routine when she heard the morning banter. She peeked her head around the front yard, where an irate Kaoru stood over a lounging Sano. "_Ano_, _ohayou_, Sano, Kaoru-chan," the kunoichi greeted hesitantly.

"_Ohayou_, Kameko-chan!" Kaoru beamed.

"Mornin', Kame-chan." Upon hearing Sano's voice, Kaoru glared at him again.

"What's going on?"

"Sanosuke is stubbornly refusing to go to the market to buy more rice when _he_ was the one who ate almost all of it yesterday!" Kaoru shook her index finger at the ex-fighter-for-hire in rage.

"Hey, it wasn't all me!" Sano protested. "Didn't you all see how much the kid was eatin'?"

"Yahiko's so puny he wouldn't be able to get the rice satchels here without dragging them!"

"So you're just gonna make _me_ do it?"

"Kenshin's asleep and I don't want to bother him! No one else is left!"

"I can do it, Kaoru-chan!" Kameko had to shout to make herself heard. She sighed a little and lowered her voice once she got their attention. "If Sano really doesn't want to go, I'll get the rice bags. I wasn't planning on doing anything in particular today either. Just training, but I can do that anytime."

"See? Problem solved, Jou-chan."

Kaoru put her hands on her hips, fuming. "'_Problem solved_'? You're so lazy you're going to make Kameko-chan try dragging those heavy rice satchels back here now? She's a kunoichi but she isn't that strong, Sanosuke!"

"I could always ask someone for help, Kaoru-ch—Sano?"

"C'mon, let's go, Kame-chan." Sano had stood up, shoving his hands into his pockets, and was waiting for Kameko to start walking.

Kaoru smirked and said to herself triumphantly, "Of course. Works everytime."

"Okay . . ." Kameko raised an eyebrow, but began walking anyway. She waved to Kaoru. "_Dewa mata_, Kaoru-chan!"

"_Dewa mata_, Kameko-chan, Sanosuke!" Kaoru beamed, feeling victorious. She pumped her fist once the two were out of sight. "Matchmaker Kaoru is working her magic!" the dojo master whispered to herself in delight.

"Why the sudden change of heart, Sano?" Kameko quipped, lightly nudging the ex-fighter-for-hire's arm. "Did Kaoru-chan bribe you somehow?"

"Nah." Sano refused to meet Kameko's gaze, pretending to be nonchalant and interested in the neighbors' gate. "Just don't want you to get hurt or somethin' from tryin' to lift rice satchels. Or somethin'." Sano mentally smacked himself for the unsure and stupid-sounding last statement.

Kameko smiled. "Awww, how sweet, Sano." But because Sano was determinedly keeping his gaze from her, he didn't see the kunoichi's blush behind the confident sentiment.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. Let's just get the rice and get out." That reminded Sanosuke of something. "Aw, crap!"

"Huh?"

"Gotta see the vixen today to check on my hand." Sano looked down at the aforementioned appendage and flexed it.

Kameko looked at it, as well. "Is it any better?"

Sano shook his head. "The fox'll have the final answer, but it ain't gonna be ready by tomorrow, for sure."

_Wow, that's right . . . tomorrow's the day._ Kameko bit her lip. _It doesn't look like Misao-chan or Aoshi-san or any of the Oniwabanshuu will make it in time, either. _"In that case . . . what are you going to do?"

Sano grinned a bit and ruffled Kameko's hair affectionately. "I'll think of somethin'. Ya don't needa worry about me, Kame-chan, no one does; you just gotta worry about yourselves."

"But if I do that, who's going to worry about _you_, Sano?"

Sano stopped at that. His chocolate brown eyes held Kameko's smoky amethyst ones for a few seconds before a blush spread across the kunoichi's face and she turned away embarrassedly. "_G-gomen_, that was, _ano_—oh, look! I see the rice stall!"

Sano followed Kameko, and his eyes were on her the whole time. The kunoichi felt the gaze but pretended not to notice. Meanwhile, she berated herself. _Stupid, stupid, stupid! If Sano wasn't so dense, he would've found out about my feelings by now! Why did I let myself say that?_

Kameko pushed the thoughts out of her mind as a middle-aged man smiled at her from his perch on a wooden stool. "Good morning, miss! How may I help you and your companion today?"

"_Ohayou_, 'd like three satchels, _onegai_."

"Very well, miss. Here you are!"

"_Arigatou!_"Kameko handed the man some yen coins as he walked to the back of the store and hauled over three rice satchels, one by one, and carefully placed them on ground, away from the wall to make them easier to grasp.

"Thank you, miss. Have a lovely day, both of you!"

"You too, sir!" Kameko bent down and managed to put her arms around the three satchels, but when she began to straighten, she found it easier than she first expected. Then, the kunoichi looked down at her arms, surprised to find only one satchel there.

"If you're worryin' about me . . ." Kameko would have jumped if she didn't realize Sano was right behind her, and his lips were right at her ear. "Who's worryin' about _you_, Kameko?"

The kunoichi was absolutely speechless. Sanosuke's soft even breaths tickling her ear and the intimate situation had driven anything logical to say out of her mind.

To her slight relief (as well as slight displeasure), Sano drew back in a few seconds, and Kameko forced herself to turn around. The ex-fighter-for-hire was grinning as if nothing had happened, balancing two rice satchels on each of his shoulders. "_Ano_, Sano, I'm not that weak, you might hur—"

Sano had shifted the two rice satchels into the crook of one arm and used the other to place a finger over Kameko's lips, silencing her and leaning in slightly. "Hey, that's enough worryin' about me. It's about time someone returned the favor. Who's probly gonna get hurt if they carry two rice satchels—me or you?"

Kameko's cheeks couldn't have been redder as Sano drew back again, slinging the two rice satchels over each shoulder again. He grinned yet again. "C'mon, let's head back. Or else the fox is gonna yell at me for bein' late. Which is kinda all the time, but still."

Kameko cracked a smile at that, hurrying to keep up with Sano's long strides. "_Hai_, okay."

**A/N: Hooray for fluff! This scene turned out totally different than when I first planned it, but I think I like this idea better :) Thanks for reading guys, and please review lots! :D Here's translations:**

**_Ohayou gozaimasu_—good morning**

**_Onegai_—please**

**_Ohayou_—shorter less formal version of 'good morning'**

**_Dewa mata_—see you later**

**_Gomen_—sorry**

**_Arigatou_—thank you**

**_Ano_—um**

**_Hai_—yes**

**Of course, the fights are coming in the next chappy! That was fast :) I'll try to update ASAP!**


	7. The Six Comrades

**A/N: I'm officially a sophomore now, woo hoo! :D And summer, here I come! :D I'm hoping that means less time between updates :)**

**So, this chapter plunges into the battles with the Six Comrades (on that topic, the Six Comrades in my fanfic include my OC Kikuchi Izanagi for a total of six, and Enishi is more like the leader)-enjoy! ;) You guys really overdid yourselves on reviews for chapter 6, thanks so much! Eggbert 3000, Nyx'sBlackRose, HellsingValentine28, Sleepyreader319, CrazyCreator33, UneFilleFrancaise, pokemonjkl, saitou's lover, and Airheadninja, you guys rock! :D I can't believe we're only six chapters in and at 47 reviews already! You guys are the best ^^**

**Disclaimer (yes it's back to normal lol): I don't own anything except Kichida Kameko and a few bits here and there of the plot.**

**Opposites Attract: The Jinchuu Arc**

**Chapter 7: The Six Comrades**

"This one will lead the defense," Kenshin declared the next afternoon, looking around at his comrades. "Sano, Kameko-dono, you both will defend the dojo, that you will, stationed in the front yard. Use your judgment to strike as needed."

"No problem," Sanosuke replied, punching his left palm with his bandaged right hand.

"_Hai_, got it," Kameko nodded firmly.

"Kaoru-dono and Yahiko will stay inside the dojo, that they will. Make defending yourselves the priority."

"Okay!" Kaoru chimed.

"Except . . ." Kenshin turned to Yahiko. "Yahiko, if and only if the dire moment comes, will be allowed to strike out, that he will."

"A-all right!" Yahiko shouted. "Let's go!"

"Is that okay?" Sano asked the others.

"This one thinks so," Kenshin replied, though a tad unsure.

"I still think it's too early . . ." Kaoru mused.

"Maybe you should reconsider, Ken-san?" Megumi suggested.

"Well, I for one think Yahiko-kun is capable," Kameko stated. "He has matured with all of these experiences he's had."

"_Hai_, that is true, as well," Kenshin agreed. He then resumed his planning. "Megumi-dono will be inside the dojo also, that she will. Treat the wounded, _onegai_."

"Leave it to me," Megumi smiled. "I'll heal any wound . . ." Her fox ears popped up as she looked pointedly at Sano. "As long as you don't get yourself killed."

Sano grit his teeth. "Don't look at me when ya say that!"

"_Ano_ . . ." Tsubame piped up. "And me?"

"Tsubame-dono, you will evacuate to the Akabeko's temporary location, that you will."

"What?" Tsubame gasped.

"In this situation, Enishi will not attack the Akabeko again," Kenshin explained gently. "You are the only one connected to us through the Akabeko, that you are. You will be safer there, you will."

". . . That's true," Tsubame's eyes teared a bit. "I will be a burden if I stay here . . ."

Yahiko put a comforting hand at the back of the little girl's head. "I'll take you."

A slight blush colored Tsubame's cheeks. "Okay."

"Don't worry," Yahiko assured her. "None of us are going to die. We'll all see you again."

Everyone smiled. ". . . It is just as Yahiko says, that it is," Kenshin smiled.

A small smile crept across Tsubame's face. "Okay. _Ja ne_, everyone."

"_Ja ne_," the rest of them replied.

_That evening . . ._

"The sun . . . has set . . ." Kenshin noted.

"_Hai_," Kameko said a bit anxiously.

"Four or five hours left of 'today' . . ." Sanosuke glanced at Yahiko. "Did you take the li'l girl home?"

"Yeah," Yahiko nodded.

"It was a little cruel to Tsubame-chan," Kaoru commented.

"We have no choice," Megumi answered. "It's too dangerous here."

"It is," Kameko agreed, adjusting the twin sakabatou crossed across her back.

"Kameko-chan, do you want some _onigiri_?"

The kunoichi nodded and thanked Kaoru offhandedly, nibbling at the rice ball which was fortunately made by Megumi. _Almost time . . ._

"Kenshin."

"_Hai_, Kaoru-dono?"

"Dinner. They're _onigiri_. Do you want them?"

"_Iie_, just tea will be fine, that it will," Kenshin replied, taking the cup off the platter.

Kaoru glanced at Kameko. "Misao-chan didn't make it . . ."

"Oh, she didn't, did she?" Kameko suddenly realized. _I didn't think Misao-chan would make it though . . . it's too far of a walk and it took time for her to get the letter._

"What?" Kenshin asked, looking between the two seventeen-year-old girls.

"Nothing," Kaoru and Kameko said together. "Nothing."

"They're a bit late," Yahiko remarked, chewing on a rice ball. "If they are coming, they should show up already."

"Well, considerin' them . . ." Sano pondered. "They'll probly start with a blast from that cannon . . ."

As if on cue, light flashed and a boom was heard. Everyone jumped up from their spots. "Here they come!"

They all looked up at the sky, surprised to see separate bursts of light illuminating the darkness. "What . . ."

"Oh, they're fireworks!" Kameko breathed, feeling silly to have reacted so explosively.

"Startled me," Yahiko admitted.

"Oh yeah, today's the summer festival, I think," Sano mentioned.

"It quickly turns to winter each year after this festival . . . the wind chills, and the sky is higher . . . oh?" Kaoru looked up at a particular dazzling array of light. "That firework looks odd . . . is it a dud?"

Megumi pointed to another firework. "Look at the one under it . . ."

Kenshin's eyes widened. "_Iie . . ._ it's not! It's not a dud, that it is not!"

Suddenly, three different floating baskets suppoted by large balloons came forth from the darkness. "These are—" Yahiko shouted.

"Hot air balloons!" Kameko finished, stunned. "But where . . . ?"

"No way . . . !" Sano trailed off.

"The top-notch technology first used in the Seinan War . . . how do they have something like this?" Kenshin demanded.

The balloons lowered only slightly, when a rumbling voice could be heard. "Battousai . . . Battousai! BATTOUSAI!"

A familiarly massive shape jumped from one of the balloons. "Here they come!" Yahiko yelled.

"A cannon!" Megumi exclaimed.

"It's him!" Kameko shouted. "The man from the Akabeko, who destroyed it, too! Kujiranami Hyougo!"

The bulky man lowered his cannon arm and steadied it. "He's going to fire from there?" Kaoru cried in horror.

Kameko tensed, unsheathing her sakabatou and ready to spring from the ground, but wasn't sure if she should do so. "What are we going to do?"

"Crap!" Yahiko and Sano cursed as the man descended.

"Sano!" Everyone looked at Kenshin, who began running towards the ex-fighter-for-hire. "Flight! Lend this one your fist!"

"My fist . . . ?" Sano's eyes widened, and then he made a closed fist in his right hand. "All right!"

Kaoru, Kameko, Megumi, and Yahiko looked on, holding their breaths, as Kenshin jumped off the ground onto Sano's raised fist, then used the momentum to leap off the appendage and into the sky towards Kujiranami.

"He's flying!"

"Ken-san!"

"Kenshin!"

"Kenshin-san!"

In midair, Kenshin unsheathed his sakabatou and shouted, "_Hiten Mitsurugi-Ryuu Kuzu-Ryuusen!_"

All nine strikes hit the stunned Kujiranami, who crashed to the ground. "All right!" Sano pumped his fist.

Kenshin landed on the rooftop in front of Kujiranami as Kaoru hurried over, saying his name, but he didn't seem to hear her. The rurouni took a deep breath and roared. The roof beneath his feet began to splinter and explode into tiny bits that showered the three young women. Megumi shielded her eyes as Kameko cried out, "It's _kenki_!"

Once the debris stopped flying through the air, Kenshin could be seen, standing on the roof with narrowed, sharp eyes; amethyst glinting with gold. Kaoru's eyes widened. "No . . ."

". . . Kaoru-dono." Kenshin's voice was normal, to Kaoru's relief. "It is now this one's chance, that it is. Hurry into the dojo."

"Yahiko, watch carefully," Sano said, looking up at Kenshin. "If you miss this appearance, the first since the battle in Kyoto, who knows when your next chance'll be. This is the Himura Kenshin who conquered Battousai-in that state, victory's certain, unless the opponent's stronger than Shishio!"

Yahiko followed Sano's gaze in awe, staring up at the rurouni, until the group heard a thud. Everyone's heads turned to Kujiranami, who was on a knee and trembling. Suddenly, he shot up with a roar and aimed his cannon arm. "BATTOU . . . SAIIII!"

"He's going to shoot again!" Kameko shouted. "Everyone, get in the dojo, quickly!"

No one wasted time in doing so as Sano and Kameko ushered Yahiko, Megumi, and Kaoru towards the entrance. Kameko was about to go inside when she noticed Sano kneeling and looking under the dojo porch's floorboards. A second later, he began pulling out something rod-like wrapped in white cloth. "What is that? Kameko asked.

Sano chuckled. "Heh . . . well, I knew they were gonna have a cannon . . ." In one fluid motion, the ex-fighter-for-hire whipped out whatever had been under the floorboards, sending them crashing aside. ". . . and I can't leave it all up to Kenshin!"

"The zanbatou!" Yahiko exclaimed.

"So that's the plan he was talking about yesterday!" Kameko realized, looking over the enormous sword patched up in the center by metal bands.

Kujiranami growled and fired. Sano roared and swung the zanbatou back before connecting with the cannon ball, which hit the huge sword right in the center, where it had been fixed.

"It broke!" Megumi cried as the metal bands snapped, forming a clean crack in the center of the zanbatou and breaking it in half.

"But the cannonball . . . !"

Kaoru and Kameko's eyes widened as they tracked the cannon ball's path. _Sano had enough strength to send the cannon ball back to Kujiranami with equal force!_

"You brat!" The cannon ball hit Kujiranami's Armstrong Cannon, and he tossed it aside, causing an explosion behind him. He growled, "Reload cannon."

"That won't be allowed, it won't."

Everyone looked up at the sky in surprise as Kenshin descended with his godspeed, avoiding Kujiranami's blind swing and slashing him right under the cannon arm. "Battou . . . sai . . ." Kujiranami foamed at the mouth and fell over.

"I don't think just that alone'll put the giant to sleep," Sano remarked, planting the end of his broken zanbatou into the ground. "But for now . . . one down!"

"Wow," Yahiko breathed. "Together, they're stronger than the Armstrong Cannon!"

Kameko smiled at his admiration. "They're quite the pair, aren't they?"

"The second wave!"

Everyone's attention turned to the sky as three more warriors jumped from their respective balloons. Kameko immediately made out the armor-clad man in the center to be Kikuchi Izanagi, while Sanosuke and Kenshin seemed to recognize the other two, Inui Banjin and Otowa Hyouko.

Though the trio was far, the glint of steel caught Kameko's eyes, and then the movement of Izanagi's lips. _Is he . . . chanting something?_ the kunoichi wondered, squinting at the sky. Her eyes widened at the hundreds of illuminated spheres suddenly raining down from the darkness. _Fireballs . . . !_

"Everyone get back!" Kameko cried, unsheathing her sakabatou and somersaulting off one of the dojo porch pillars. "_Seigyoku Ryuu-ken!_"

The blue watery shockwave extinguished a good chunk of the smallish fireballs, but it wasn't big enough to cover the entire expanse of them. Kameko landed on the roof and summoned another Sapphire Dragon Blade to clear away the rest.

Izanagi landed in front of Kameko, smiling in a friendly manner. "Hello again, Miss Kameko," he greeted, as though meeting her in a store and not for a duel. "I am most glad to find you in good health. Lovely night, wouldn't you say?" The armor-clad man's deep brown eyes twinkled. "For a battle, of course."

"Kikuchi, cut the formal crap! We ain't here for that!" Inui Banjin, a grinning man wearing camouflage somersaulted down. "Ha-haa! _Jutsushiki Muteki-ryuu Raijin Guruma_—Thunder God Wheel!" Arms extended, Banjin crashed downwards into one of the gates, splintering it into two. "Ha-haa!" The third man, a crossdresser by the name of Otowa Hyouko with a katana and black hair falling sharply over his left eye, landed next to the camo-fighter, silent but smirking.

"Sir Banjin, let's not destroy too much of the battlefield, hm?" Izanagi suggested. "There's no point. It attracts too much attention anyhow."

"Ha-haa, like I give a damn, Kikuchi!" Banjin flexed his muscles.

". . . He's quite showy . . ." Megumi remarked.

"It just means that he is confident of his abilities," Kaoru stated. "That destructive power is not to be taken lightly."

"But . . ." Yahiko frowned. "His mind seems to be stupid!"

"True . . . that move really had no point . . ." Kaoru agreed.

"I am sorry, Sir Banjin, but I am inclined to agree," Izanagi chimed in, still smiling.

"What did you say!" Banjin roared.

". . . The same type, I see," Megumi commented, looking pointedly at Sanosuke, who glared at her.

"Hmm . . . how brave of the women and children to stay at the battlefield," Otowa smirked. "And one is ready to fight! How noble." His hand went to his katana sheath. "Why don't I . . ."

"Do not mistake your opponent."

"Kenshin!"

The rurouni landed between Sano and Kameko and in front of Otowa. "This one is your opponent, that he is," he declared, looking back at the crossdresser. Otowa, Banjin, and Izanagi narrowed their eyes.

Sano jerked his head at the cannon-armed man. "Kenshin, Kujiranami is—"

"It's fine, that it is," Kenshin replied. "There is a vital point under the arm. The impact goes through the ribs to the lungs. He will not be able to move, that he will not."

"Are you sure, Kenshin-san?" Kameko asked, eyeing Kujiranami, who was trembling but still trying to get up.

Kenshin nodded. "Though he may be conscious, he will not be able to move a finger due to the difficulty in breathing, that he will not."

"Ha-haa!" Banjin clenched his fist, armed with a metal gauntlet. "So you're Battousai! That's great! I'll defeat you! But before that . . ." He glared at Sano. "I'll clear my name of the stain you've caused!"

Sano's chocolate brown eyes narrowed. "Bring it on . . ." He picked up the half of his broken zanbatou that still had the handle and walked a couple of steps closer.

"You have a weapon today. Ha! I don't care. No matter what you come at me with . . ." Banjin clenched his fists. "I'll give you new appreciation of my gauntlets!"

With a simultaneous roar, the two charged at one another. "_Sanosuke!_"

Sano swung his zanbatou into Banjin's gauntleted arms, which were crossed in front of him. Sano looked solemn for a few moments as the zanbatou broke into bits for the final time, and then his eyes widened. "What . . . ?"

"How . . . his gauntlets are completely unharmed!" Kameko gasped.

Banjin grinned and swung his arms, hitting Sano in the chest. "Whaddaya mean, 'What'? I told you, 'new appreciation'! Invulnerable Gauntlet, regenerated as _Neo-Invulnerable_ Gauntlet! Look! Improved shape and performance!" Banjin looked up at Enishi's balloon once he got a breather. "I'll gladly use it!" He then jeered at Sano, "Ha-haa! How do you feel now? Despair? Regret?"

". . . I'm burnin' inside." Sano flicked blood away from his forehead. "I didn't think I'd be tricked by a fool." Banjin seemed to take exception to that remark, and then Sano charged again, bandaged fist raised. "And it seems like the zanbatou died for nothin'!"

"Shut up!" Banjin knocked away Sano's fist with one arm and clocked him with the other.

"Sano!" Kameko cried.

"Crap! Sanosuke will be . . . !" Yahiko turned to Kenshin for any sort of answer.

"Why won't you move?" Otowa asked the rurouni, smirking. "Going to watch your friend die?"

". . . Helping him will open these four open to your attacks, that it will."

"Ha. You have no trust in your little female warrior here?"

"That is not the case at all. If she tries to stop you, your partner will attack the three behind us, that he will. The same outcome would result if we switched roles."

"How? Why do you think so?"

"Indeed, why on earth would you think such a thing, Sir Battousai?"

"There is no how or why," Kenshin replied solemnly. "You both are just those kinds of men."

Identical grins spread across Izanagi and Otowa's faces. "You understand well, I see."

"Smart man. I expected nothing less from you, Sir Battousai."

"So you will watch him die," Otowa challenged as Banjin parried another one of Sanosuke's punches and returned with equal force.

_Sano . . ._ Kameko looked between the battle and the rurouni worriedly. _But we can't help him . . . _She glanced behind her, seeing Megumi, Kaoru, and Yahiko's anxious faces. _Like Kenshin-san said, we can't risk it . . ._

"If he dies here . . ." Kameko turned her attention to Kenshin again. "Sagara Sanosuke was, from the very beginning, only that much of a man, that he was."

One of Izanagi's eyebrows raised. "Quite the candid declaration there, Sir Battousai."

"Ha!" Otowa laughed derisively. "You say some good things, Battousai! I'm happy to hear your true feelings! I see, you would abandon him! Let him die!"

The initial surprise of the rurouni's statement wore off as its meaning became clearer to the kunoichi. _Kenshin-san isn't saying that as an insult to Sano's skills . . . he's saying it because it's Sano! Kenshin-san has never had to protect Sano once, because Sano has been fighting alongside him for almost the entire time he's been in Tokyo . . ._

_Come to think of it, Kenshin-san has never had to protect _me_ either, the entire time I've known the Kenshingumi, but that's because . . ._ Kameko looked up in realization at the ex-fighter-for-hire, splattered with his own blood but still charging relentlessly back into the fray. Her cheeks heated a bit when she remembered their exchange from the previous afternoon. _It's because _Sano _has always been there whenever I did need help. I could handle myself as well as the others, but if anything went wrong . . . Sano always seemed to be there to catch me when I fell . . ._

"Ha-haa!"

Another one of Banjin's victorious snickers brought Kameko out of her thoughts, as the camouflage-wearing man connected with Sano's chin. "Heh heh heh . . ." Otowa chuckled. "Isn't it difficult to fight while defending something?"

"Sanosuke . . ." Yahiko and Kameko said.

"Kenshin . . ." Kaoru bit her lip.

Suddenly, Kameko sensed movement from one of the balloons, and before anyone could say anything, something crashed down to the ground from it, sending dust up into the air. When it cleared, a large thing very similar to the 'trophy' Sano had brought home earlier came into view, with a man dressed in black with a white skull mask on its arm.

"That's the thing from that time at the Aoi-Ya . . . !" Kaoru shouted.

"I think its name is Iwanbou!" Yahiko added. "But it seems a lot more ferocious than before!"

_It looks nothing like the stupid Juppongatana Chou-san was talking about back in Kyoto . . ._ Kameko thought. _And who's that other guy?_ She then noticed Izanagi smiling.

"_Kouri no Tanken!_"

Kameko's eyes widened as the small kunai between the armor-clad warrior's fingers turned to sharp icicles and were hurled at her, Kenshin, and the three behind them. She stepped back for a counterattack, then noticing that Kenshin had looked back briefly before dodging. "_Koukigyoku Ryuu-ken!_"

The icicle kunai melted into water, and then Kameko realized Kenshin was charging at Otowa. _What's Kenshin-san doing? He's putting all of his power into a single strike! That's not like him at all!_ She looked on as Kenshin swung his sakabatou, getting past Otowa to face Iwanbou and its owner. Otowa grinned at the open access he had, but suddenly, Yahiko gave a battle cry and jumped in, smacking the crossdresser's cheek with his bokken. _Yahiko-kun? Then . . ._ Kameko's eyes widened as she realized why she'd seen the rurouni look back before dodging Izanagi's Daggers of Ice. _Kenshin-san plans to let Yahiko-kun fight!_

"It would do you well to worry more about your battle, Miss Kameko," Izanagi smiled, crossing his arms in front of him, kunai tips peeking between his fingers. "Just a small bit of advice."

Kameko took one last look at a determined Yahiko and reassured herself the Kamiya Kasshin-ryuu student would be able to handle it. She then focused on Izanagi, taking a defensive stance with her twin sakabatou. "Let's go."

"My pleasure." Izanagi then charged. "_Kaze no Tanken!_"

"_Ryokugyoku Ryuu-ken!_"

Kameko expected to see some sort of signal indicating Izanagi had used an attack, but there was none. Despite the quick release of the kunoichi's move, Izanagi dodged it and out of nowhere, Kameko felt sharp diagonal slashes across her arms, legs, and cheeks, which soon opened and began to bleed. It wasn't the stinging of the small wounds that bothered the kunoichi; it was the way they had been made.

_Kikuchi-san didn't even come close to me, and I didn't see his kunai leave his fingers—in fact, they're not there at all!_ Kameko narrowed her smoky amethyst eyes and wiped blood off her cheek. _Kaze no Tanken, Daggers of Wind . . . but how was air able to cut me? My Ryokugyoku Ryuu-ken can cut because it's big and combines a shockwave with air . . . Kikuchi-san's kunai aren't close to big enough to do that!_

A yell of, "Enishi!" brought all the duelers out of their trances, and their attention turned to Kenshin, standing before the torn arm of Iwanbou and staring defiantly up at the man in the sky.

"I will come down when there is no one else to fight," the white-haired man stated simply, pushing his dark glasses up the bridge of his nose.

"Just words!" Attention shifted again, this time to a bloody but focused Sanosuke. "You better be able to back 'em up!"

"Sano . . ." Kameko looked back up at Enishi, who smirked.

"Even without your cheesy posturing, if I say I'll come down, I will."

"You heard that, Yahiko, Kameko!" Sano shouted, smacking his bandaged fist into his palm. "One win per person! I'm leavin' that drag queen to you, Yahiko! And Kameko, the dagger guy's yours!"

"Gotcha!" Yahiko shouted back.

"On it, Sanosuke!" Kameko added, and with that, the three charged.

**A/N: This chappy was seven and some change pages long, yikes! Hope you all enjoyed it though :) Translations:**

**_Hai—_yes**

**_Onegai _—please**

**_Ano_—um**

**_Ja ne—_bye**

**_Onigiri_—rice balls**

**_Iie_—no**

**_Hiten Mitsurugi-ryuu Kuzu-Ryuusen_—one of Kenshin's attacks, meaning Nine-Headed Dragon Strike**

**_Kenki —_swordsman's spirit**

**_Seigyoku Ryuu-ken_—one of Kameko's attacks, meaning Sapphire Dragon Blade**

**_Zanbatou_—a very large sword, used to slice horsemen off their horses**

**_Kouri no Tanken_—one of Izanagi's attacks, meaning Daggers of Ice**

**_Kaze no Tanken _—another one of Izanagi's attacks, meaning Daggers of Wind**

**_Ryokugyoku Ryuu-ken_—another one of Kameko's attacks, meaning Emerald Dragon Blade**

**Review lots please guys! ^^**


	8. Surprises: Kameko vs Izanagi

**A/N: We're moving along steadily, though this update was a bit late, so apologies for that :P When there's a chapter that has little to do with the official RuroKen storyline, especially if it's a battle, it takes more time to plan out, a bit more like my other fanfictions. That aside, enjoy everyone! :) Huge thanks to ****Eggbert 3000****, ****Nyx'sBlackRose****, ****Airheadninja****, ****saitou's lover****, ****UneFilleFrancaise****, ****CrazyCreator33****, ****Moos90****, ****pokemonjkl****, and ****Blessine**** for reviewing the previous chapter! :D**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing but Kichida Kameko, other OCs, and a few bits and pieces of the plot.**

**Opposites Attract: The Jinchuu Arc**

**Chapter 8: Surprises: Kameko vs. Izanagi**

Kameko snapped her two ends of her sakabatou into the tsurugi she'd been training with as she charged. Izanagi smiled and said, "Now the fun shall begin. I look forward to it." He parried the kunoichi's strike with the metal armor on his arm. "_Honou no Tanken!_"

Kameko backflipped over the first handful of fireball-turned kunai and used her tsurugi to deflect the others once she landed. "_Seigyoku Ryuu-ken!_"

With the wave of water, the fireballs vanished into thin gray tendrils of smoke. This time, it was Kameko using the fiery attack. "_Koukigyoku Ryuu-ken!_"

The kunoichi expected Izanagi to counter with one of his kunai attacks, but all he did was cross his armored arms in front of his face. Her eyes narrowed a bit. _My Koukigyoku Ryuu-ken is a fire-based attack like Kikuchi-san's Honou no Tanken. I countered his with Seigyoku Ryuu-ken, a water-based attack, but he didn't counter mine. It would've been much easier and less damaging to use a water-based attack than try to brave it out like he is now . . . so then that must mean he doesn't have a water-based attack! His dagger attacks may be elemental, just like mine . . . but he doesn't have the same ones, so he can't counter all of my attacks!_

Izanagi smiled. "That look on your face . . . I take it that you have figured out something?" His arms returned to his side as he withdrew more kunai. "Yet you still haven't figured out _everything_, Miss Kameko. _Kaze no Tanken!_"

_That attack . . . !_ Kameko was again unable to track down Izanagi's kunai and felt a large slash coupled with several other smaller ones under her arm. Just as suddenly, blood sprayed from the wound and the kunoichi clutched her side. _How . . . ?_

"Is that all you have, Miss Kameko?" Izanagi questioned, looking mildly surprised. "I expected you to have figured it out by now."

_How is he doing that?_ Kameko asked herself, narrowing her eyes again. _I know the attack has something to do with wind . . . but what? The attack can't be seen, which is like the wind, but . . ._ The kunoichi's eyes then widened immediately. _It can't be seen! So if it can't be seen . . . I can use one of my attacks to see the direction his kunai are going! I still don't know how his Daggers of Wind work, but at least I can stop it . . . and if I can stop it, he can't use it, however it works._

"That look again, hm?" Izanagi smiled for what seemed to be the umpteenth time. "Good, Miss Kameko. Let us see what you have come up with. _Kaze no Tanken!_"

Kameko had shouted, "_Seigyoku Ryuu-ken!_" before the full phrase had come out of the armor clad-man's mouth. She watched the wave of water, heart pounding, and it ever so slightly curved to the left, then splashed onto the ground that Izanagi had vacated. That was all she needed to see.

The kunoichi rolled to the right, mind racing in realization as she did so. _I can still feel the wind, but it's not the slashing kind that cut me before. The closer to me it is, the more _pressurized_ it is! That's how Kikuchi-san was cutting me with air!_

Another smile spread across Izanagi's face. "I can see the wits worthy of a master of the Kesshou Ryuu-ken, Miss Kameko. You seem to understand now. I must say, I congratulate you on getting this far, but now the fun will end. I came here to entertain you with a duel, but the entire reason I suffered all these years, the reason I joined Sir Enishi, Sir Banjin, Sir Hyouko, Sir Hyougo, Sir Gein . . . was for Battousai's _head_."

Kameko's eyes widened at the unexpected malicious statement spat from the cheerful Izanagi's mouth. Then she remembered the entire point of the declaration of battle on the dojo. _Yukishiro Enishi is out for revenge . . . his _jinchuu_ . . . against Kenshin-san . . . as are his Six Comrades. Kikuchi-san must have his own reasons for being here . . . _"But what could a smiling man like you have against Kenshin-san, Kikuchi-san?"

"Naïve you are, Miss Kameko," Izanagi said with a small smile. "But I suppose, for one of your age, that is appropriate. I have been that smiling man you speak of my entire life, from the day I was born. But behind that smile is a story only I can fathom the raw pain of . . ."

Izanagi sighed deeply. "In my village fourteen years ago, I led a life nothing short of my idea of perfect. I lived in a small hospitable village. I was engaged to the woman of my dreams. I was not rich, but neither was I poor. I was the leader of the village army. I had the entire population's respect and best wishes. But a year later, we got wind of the war happening in Japan, and everything changed for the worse . . .

"We were attacked shortly afterwards. Our small village had always been quite close, so our decision in the war was unanimous. We had prepared for battle as much as we could . . . but no one had prepared for the manslayer who was a legend in the making . . . your very own Sir Battousai. He didn't even need an army, I would say. The time it took his men to kill one man, he had killed two, three, even four. Either way, our men were being mowed down. I would have likely not be standing here before you, Miss Kameko, if Sir Battousai had faced me. I will have the grace to say it, I was lucky. I was bloody, battered, and unconscious within minutes.

Izanagi's face darkened, and the hatred in his voice was beginning to seep through. "I awoke . . . blood was everywhere. It is not an embellishment. Why else would blood not be everywhere? The entire village had been slaughtered. Not a child, not a woman had been spared, let alone a man. I was in shock. My men were dead. My to-be wife was dead. The village elder was dead. _Everyone_. I was the strongest warrior in my village, and they had told me so . . ." The armor-clad warrior's fists tightened around his kunai. ". . . and yet, I failed them. Horrendously."

Kameko was stunned, just as every time she'd heard about one of Kenshin's crimes as a _hitokiri_. "But then . . . Kikuchi-san, you said that you yourself failed your village . . . so why are you after Kenshin-san?"

"It was _he_ who killed my village!" Izanagi exploded, startling the kunoichi into taking a step back. The smiling man from before had disintegrated completely. "_Him_! _His_ men! _His_ damned patriots! That, I cannot forgive—I will _never_ forgive! Expect nothing from me, Miss Kameko, whatever or whoever you may be! I will slay _anyone_ and _everyone_ in my path to revenge! I have trained for more than a decade for the moment that I take that murderer's _head!_"

_It's just like Seta Soujirou . . . when he loses control . . ._ Kameko realized, feeling the dark aura about the armor-clad man. _But I don't know if this will work out for me as well as it did for Kenshin-san . . ._

"You think you have figured out everything, Miss Kameko," Izanagi taunted. "But we have yet to see how much that will help you . . . or rather, help _me!_ _Kaminari no Tanken!_"

Izanagi leapt faster than Kameko could see, and next thing she knew, his presence was behind her, and little jabs pricked her neck. Her eyes widened as she felt something strangely unfamiliar course throughout her body and she whirled around—only to find she was unable to do so. The armor-clad warrior somersaulted away just as fast, and Kameko fell to her knees numbly. Her entire body was tingling and there was a persistent tinny buzzing in her ears. She tried to raise a hand to massage her neck, where the strange sensations seemed to be rooting from, but the movement was jerky and, the kunoichi realized in horror, she could barely feel her hands. _Wh-what in kami-sama's name . . . ?_

"You have never been _literally _shocked before, have you, Miss Kameko?" Izanagi sneered, holding up his kunai which, Kameko realized, were sparking with electricity. "_Kaminari no Tanken_—Daggers of Lightning. An attack which courses throughout the body constantly, messing with electrical signals being sent to the brain by the spinal cord. In other words . . . an attack that messes with the senses and reflexes, weakening and slowing them down, respectively—the things a warrior, especially a ninja, most relies on. Incredibly difficult to resist or break." A smirk spread across the armor-clad warrior's face. "And if it is wished . . . the voltage can be upped enough to _kill_ a person. You are lucky I gave you but a taste of _Kaminari no Tanken_'s power."

_Ugh . . ._ Kameko tried to shake her head and get rid of the numbness, but it was to no avail. _I have to snap out of it! I have absolutely no chance if I can't even get off the ground . . . get up, Kameko, GET UP!_ the kunoichi urged herself, managing to clench a fist, which she took as a good start._ Come on, you have more in you than this! It's just electricity . . . it's not even going to kill you by itself! Get up, for everyone's sake! To keep the promise we made . . ._

It felt as if something had clicked inside of Kameko, and she felt some mobility in her body as she continued her persistent efforts to stand. _The promise we made to Tsubame-chan . . . and to ourselves!_

Slowly but surely, the kunoichi managed to stand on shaky legs. With a determined resolve, she slammed her foot into the ground, sending an awakening jolt throughout her body. _That's it! _Kameko panted slightly, narrowing her eyes again as a particular attack of hers—as well as Kenshin's—came to mind. _The answer is simple enough . . . but I need one good well-timed strike. Then I can put this one away . . . but if anything goes wrong, I'm finished._

Izanagi's eyebrows rose slightly as he remarked, "Hm, not bad at all, Miss Kameko . . . but do you have enough in you to dodge and attack? Strong will you may have, but it cannot break everything nor completely. There are limits, especially when your own body is involved."

"Don't worry, Kikuchi-san." Kameko spun her tsurugi a few times to prove she was fine, then took a defensive stance, holding the double-edged hybrid of a sword and spear out in front of her. "I have enough in me, so let's go."

"My pleasure. _Kouri no Tanken!_"

_Not yet!_ Kameko summoned a Ruby Dragon Blade, but it was then she realized the effects of the electricity messing with her senses and reflexes. The attack was a fraction of a second late; not much, but just enough for her to miss a good chunk of the icicles. The kunoichi winced as some of the frigid ice kunai impaled her arm and left side. _Ugh . . . I can't hold out much longer like this. But I have to put all my energy into attacking, not dodging . . ._

"Hm . . . still a bit too nimble for my tastes." Izanagi smirked maliciously, revealing five kunai in each hand that were much bigger than the previous ones. "Maximum power . . . _Kaminari no Tanken!_"

_NOW!_ "_Hiten Mitsurugi-Ryuu—Doryuusen!_"

Kameko slammed both ends of her tsurugi into the ground, sending dirt and pebbles flying everywhere, then jumped through the dust cloud she'd created. The large kunai Izanagi had thrown sliced across her arms and chest, but, as she'd predicted, their electrical charges had been completely canceled out by the earth. Izanagi coughed and crossed his arms in front of him as Kameko winded up for the final blow.

"_Kesshou Ryuu-ken Ougi—Kongouseki Ryuu-ken!_"

The golden shockwave hit Izanagi first, followed by the glowing ends of the tsurugi, one after the other, creating a deep cross wound across his chest. The impact sent him crashing into the rubble of the already destroyed dojo wall. "What power . . ." the armor-clad warrior wheezed with a small chuckle before his chi faded, unconscious.

Kameko planted an end of her tsurugi into the ground and leaned her head against it as she panted. _Phew, that was a close one . . . and just like last time, using the Doryuusen took a lot out of me . . . I wonder how Kenshin-san does it all the time? He doesn't even have a very large build, like, say, Hiko-san—_

Kameko heard Yahiko's voice and turned to her right, where Otowa and a bloody and battered Yahiko were still fighting a few yards away. Kenshin and Kaoru were on the porch, Kaoru watching worriedly, while Kameko recognized the cold stare in the rurouni's eyes aimed at the crossdresser. _Yahiko-kun's very injured . . . I see what Kenshin-san's doing. Hopefully, it's enough . . ._

Otowa charged, and Yahiko crossed his arms at the wrist, stopping the blade in its path, then pushed forward with a roar. Kameko's eyes widened. _Kamiya Kasshin-ryuu's Secret Move, the Hawatari! He found a way to use it in an actual battle!_

The strange sharp spikes on Otowa's back extended, and Kameko gasped in horror as they closed in on Yahiko, but her worry was short-lived. The ten-year-old shouted something—"_YOU CAN'T KILL ME!_"—and then connected with Otowa's chin . . . completely knocking him out. _The Hawatari offensive attack . . . Yahiko-kun won!_

Yahiko looked alarmed for a moment as he struggled to stand, and then Kenshin stepped in and caught him before he fell, looking at the unconscious kid solemnly.

Kameko couldn't help but smile as she walked over, with the help of her tsurugi. She put a hand on Yahiko's head carefully and told him fondly, "You did it, Yahiko-kun. You won. You did us proud."

"That he did," Kenshin smiled as well. A slight look of concern crossed his features. "Kameko-dono, are you . . . ?"

"Don't worry about me, Kenshin-san," Kameko assured him. "Take care of Yahiko-kun first, _onegai_."

Kenshin nodded as Megumi and a bloodstained and injured but alive Sanosuke came outside. The beautiful doctor rushed over to Yahiko as Kenshin gently set him down, while the ex-fighter-for-hire grinned. "Damn, the kid did good."

Kameko smiled again, shifting her weight on the tsurugi as her wounded right side protested. "_Hai_, he sure did . . . all that training and heart sure pays off. Yahiko-kun has a really bright future ahead of him."

"How is he, Megumi-dono?" Kenshin questioned.

"He'll be fine," Megumi assured them as she opened her medical chest and took out bandages. "His ligaments and vital organs aren't terribly injured." She cast a side glance at Sano. "They'll be easier to treat than some idiot's right hand."

"Hey, thanks," Sano shot back sarcastically. "However . . ." He turned his head to look at the out-cold Otowa. "Leavin' this world laughin' . . . he must've had no regrets."

"He's not dead," Megumi sighed.

"He probably couldn't believe he was defeated by a child not even half his age," Kameko said.

"Maybe. But it didn't seem that way from the sidelines." Sano looked at Kenshin. "This dude saw you and thought of retreatin' even though he was in the middle of a fight."

"I noticed it, too," Kameko added. "The explosive power of a man who's concentrating on attacking is different than a man who's thinking of retreating."

"Sano, Kameko-dono—"

"We know," Kameko affirmed. "We won't say anything to Yahiko-kun."

"It wouldn't help his morale to say, 'You won 'cause Kenshin was glarin' at him over your shoulder.' Right?"

Kenshin smiled. "_Hai_. But, the one who fought was Yahiko, so it was he who won, that it was."

"How is it, instructor? Your student's first growth?" Sano turned to Kaoru, who was still sitting on her knees on the porch.

"H-huh?" Kaoru stuttered.

"How disgraceful," Megumi commented in disbelief. "The student fought hard and the instructor loses the strength in her legs."

"No! That's not true!" Kaoru snapped at the doctor. Her tone became softer. "Even though Yahiko won by being able to use the _Hawatari_, I was just so relieved that he survived . . ."

"And so you got weak-kneed," Megumi deadpanned. "Still disgraceful."

"Yeah," Sano agreed.

"Hey!" Kaoru protested.

A new, familiar voice entered the fray. "Chattering during a battle . . . the utter stupidity of this crew remains unchanged."

Kameko, Kenshin, and Sano's eyes widened. _That voice . . . ! It sounded exactly like . . ._

The three turned around, but their eyes caught an empty hot air balloon in the sky next to Enishi's. At their alarm, Enishi smirked. "Don't worry. I won't be ambushing you after all this." His smirk widened darkly. "At least, _I_ won't."

Kenshin whirled around. "_Kaoru-dono!_"

"Huh?"

Kameko was already running towards the dojo master as Kenshin shouted, "Hurry over here!" I was then Kaoru seemed to notice something and gasped when she looked behind her. Kameko's eyes widened when she saw a long clawed arm heading towards the seventeen-year-old. "_Iie, Kaoru-chan!_ _Look out!_"

Kameko reached Kaoru just in time to push her towards Kenshin, who was coming in from the other side. She breathed a small sigh of relief as the rurouni raced away, but her relief was short-lived as the arm she and Kaoru had seen crashed through the spot the dojo master had been sitting moments before.

Kameko cursed the electricity still messing with her reflexes and tried to dodge, but only avoided the jagged claws as she was catapulted backwards. She braced herself for the inevitable fall . . . only it didn't come.

The kunoichi was in the crook of someone's outstretched arm. She expected it to be Sano, but then the ashy odor wafted up to her nostrils and her eyes snapped open in shock.

"Hmph," the mysterious but most definitely familiar man scoffed at the roars coming from the strange long-armed man who had attacked Kaoru. "This beast howls a lot."

Kameko couldn't believe it. "H-Hajime-oji-san . . . ?"

**A/N: This chapter ended up longer than I thought it would :P I have to go to sleep soon lol, so translations I'll put up tomorrow—a lot of them are given in the chapter anyway :P Reviews lots please guys, and I'll try to update soon!**

**EDIT: All right guys, here are the translations :P Sorry about the inconvenience ^^'**

**_Honou no Tanken - _Daggers of Fire (one of Izanagi's attacks)**

**_Seigyoku Ryuu-ken_ - Sapphire Dragon Blade (one of Kameko's attacks)**

**_Koukigyoku Ryuu-ken_ - Ruby Dragon Blade (another one of Kameko's attacks)**

**_Kaze no Tanken_ - Daggers of Wind (another one of Izanagi's attacks)**

**_Hitokiri_ - manslayer**

**_Kaminari no Tanken_ - Daggers of Lightning (another Izanagi attack)**

**_Kouri no Tanken_ - Daggers of Ice (last Izanagi attack)**

**_Hiten Mitsurugi-Ryuu Doryuusen_ - Earth Dragon Flash (one of Kenshin's and Kameko's attacks)**

**_Kesshou Ryuu-ken Ougi Kongouseki Ryuu-ken_ - Crystal Dragon Blades Secret Diamond Dragon Blade (Kameko's final attack)**

**_Hawatari_ - Blade Crossing (secret of the Kamiya Kasshin-ryuu)**

**_Onegai_ - please**

**_Hai_ - yes**

**_Iie_ - no**

**_Oji-san_ - uncle**


	9. Return of the Wolf: Saitou vs Yatsume

**A/N: These next two or so chapters will be very close to the original storyline, so apologies in advance for that—I'll try to make them as interesting as possible though! :) (Though Rurouni Kenshin is interesting to me any time I read it :)**

**Oh yeah, and an important note: my little brother's having surgery in a couple of weeks and extended family's coming over, so I won't be really active on the computer, meaning the next chapter might take a while to type up. Sorry, but family before everything :) You guys can relate, right? I'll see what I can do but at most there'll be one (maybe two) update(s) in the next couple weeks or so. So enjoy this chapter lol x)**

**Thanks to ****pokemonjkl****, ****Moos90****, ****Nyx'sBlackRose****, ****Airheadninja****, ****saitou's lover****, ****UneFilleFrancaise****, ****CrazyCreator33****, and ****Bonnia**** for reviewing the previous chapter! :) Love you guys ^^**

**Disclaimer: Nothing is mine except Kameko, my other OCs, and a few bits of the plot.**

**Opposites Attract: The Jinchuu Arc**

**Chapter 9: Return of the Wolf: Saitou vs Yatsume**

"Y-you were . . . alive?" Sanosuke said slowly, eyes wide.

Saitou blew cigarette smoke out of mouth. "You don't give me much credit. Starting with Ikeda-Ya, I've been through many deadly battles in the Boshin and Seinan Wars—" He smirked. "I was the only one of the Shinsengumi said to be invulnerable."

_I can't . . . believe it . . ._ Kameko's eyes mirrored Sano's as she looked up at Saitou, speechless. _Hajime-oji-san is . . . alive . . ._ A small part of the kunoichi felt like hugging her uncle, but she knew he wasn't that type of person, nor was it the most appropriate situation.

Saitou raised the cigarette to his lips as he let go of Kameko and pushed her in Sano's direction. "I've come to interrogate you on your ties to Yukishiro Enishi, but it seems there's no need to ask. Your relationship seems to be the worst kind."

"What's this?" Sano demanded, steadying the kunoichi with his own arm. "You . . . if you've been alive this whole damn time, why were you hidin' from us?"

"You were already in battle. This is convenient." Saitou blew out smoke again. "But not knowing the details is a bit annoying."

"Were you pretendin' to be dead, lookin' for a chance to kill Kenshin?" Sano accused, clenching his fists.

"Explain," Saitou said shortly.

Sano's body shook with rage. "Don't give me orders! Listen to me!"

"Quit your nagging," Saitou scoffed, narrowing his amber eyes. "Did you want me to be dead that much?"

"On the contrary, Hajime-oji-san," Kameko replied firmly, finally finding her voice. "We all felt bad. Especially . . . especially _me_, oji-san." She didn't know why she'd added the last part, but it felt like the right thing to say. As she'd expected, Saitou snorted at the sentiment.

"You should've told us right away that you were alive," Sano growled, gritting his teeth. "If you could realize that some people actually _care_."

"Quit your nagging," Saitou repeated, as if he hadn't heard either of them. "Explain."

"_No way!_" Sano roared.

Kameko was about to step in when Megumi stood behind up behind her. "I'll explain—" She stepped in calmly, smacking Sano's chin with her elbow as he protested, "Wait! I still have things to ask him!" "—what led to this, and the current situation. But in return . . . please help Ken-san."

Saitou blew out smoke. "I decline. The only time I wield my sword is for my own justice. Request denied. Explain things quickly."

Megumi and Kameko glanced at one another; there was no other option. The kunoichi sighed before explaining, "Yukishiro Enishi is Kenshin-san's brother-in-law, because Kenshin-san married Yukishiro Tomoe, Enishi-san's older sister. It's complicated, but basically, due to unforeseen circumstances, Kenshin-san accidentally killed Tomoe-san. Enishi-san saw his dead sister and thought Kenshin-san had done it on purpose and robbed her of her happiness. So now, after about thirteen years, Enishi-san is trying to get revenge on Kenshin-san by casting his own personal _jinchuu_. Six people who had the same intention came along, and we've defeated five of them already. That man . . ." Kameko motioned to the roof, where the aforementioned man was snarling about something. "He's the last one. Enishi-san said that if we defeat everyone on the ground, he'll come down to battle Kenshin-san."

"Hn . . ." Saitou smirked a little as he raised his cigarette to his lips. "Interesting . . ."

Megumi and Kameko exchanged glances again. _Is Hajime-oji-san going to do anything? He's just going to stand here and watch? That's not like him, even if he doesn't want to help._

Then, just like that, Saitou turned on his heel and began walking towards Kenshin, Kaoru, and the man, Yatsume Mumyoi. "If you plan to fight but not kill, stand back."

Kenshin, Kaoru, and Yatsume whirled around, and while Kaoru gasped, Kenshin looked thoughtful as he regarded his nemesis. ". . . That was your voice . . ."

Saitou snorted, smirking. "You don't seem too surprised."

"It is common for those believed to have died in war to be alive, that it is."

"True."

Kenshin's eyes narrowed a bit. "Why are you here . . . ?"

Saitou smirked again. "Heh. I was searching for the insurgent who sold Shishio the ironclad _Rengoku_, and as a follow-up investigation on the incident, I was led to that man in the sky. While Japan is starting to stabilize after the Shishio incident, building strength to stand up against foreign countries, it is bad news to have a gateway in Shanghai, the closest foreign port, for weapons and such to flow freely in and out. The existence of that man is a threat to Japan."

"Do you plan to take Enishi down . . . ?"

"Taking him down, arresting him, or exiling him, we'll have to drag him to the ground first." Saitou turned to Yatsume on the roof. "He's going to come down once everyone here is defeated, right? And, that freak is all that remains." Saitou smirked, putting a hand on the hilt of his katana. "This coincidence is a favorable one. I don't want your stalling to wreck it for me."

". . . Who are you?" Yatsume snarled.

"I don't deserve to be spoken to like that by some _freak_," Saitou replied coolly, stepping towards Yatsume as Kenshin called his name, but he ignored it. "A human being realizes when the time to leave comes because of their intelligence. Even beasts sense it with their instinct. But someone who blames his defeat on the victorious, losing sight of his moment to leave, is even lower than that. You are a _freak_, inferior even to a beast."

"Big talk . . ." Sano narrowed his eyes. "But he can back it up."

". . . I'm going to borrow five minutes, Battousai," Yatsume growled.

"Wait, Yatsume!" Kenshin shouted.

"You won't need five minutes," Saitou smirked. "Three minutes is more than enough."

"I have killed everyone who dared call me a freak!" Yatsume roared, leaping from his perch on the dojo roof, long clawed arm raised. "Me! My body! Yatsume! No one is allowed to call us freaks! Watch the power of Yatsume's 'body shaping'!"

Yatsume clawed his arm through the ground, sending dust and rocks into the air. When the debris cleared, there was a huge, long imprint in the ground. "It's like a trench!" Kaoru cried.

"After everything he said, Hajime-oji-san's going to help Kenshin-san . . ." Kameko said, surprised.

"Maybe he just wants to brawl a bit?" Sano suggested.

"That's a huge possibility," Megumi replied, sweatdropping.

_In any case . . . at least Kenshin-san can have as much strength as possible to battle Enishi-san,_ Kameko thought, turning back to the battlefield. _Hajime-oji-san . . . the way his mind works is impossible to understand. But even so . . . I can't deny that I'm glad he survived, even if he hid it from us._

"Feel my power!" Yatsume boasted, holding up his long clawed arm. "I'm no freak—I am above human beings!"

"Those fangs . . . are they also from body shaping?"

Yatsume seemed to find the question odd, but still answered, "Yes. I gradually sharpened them from a young age, cementing them with bone powder."

"And that tongue?"

Yatsume grinned. "This is my own."

"I see." Saitou's smirk returned. "A freak through and through."

"_I'll kill you!_" Yatsume howled.

"You? Kill me? _Me?_" Saitou unsheathed his sword, still smirking. "You uneducated fool!"

"_I'll kill you!_" Yatsume roared again. "Kill kill kill kill kill kill kill kill kill kill kill kill!"

"Hmph." Saitou went into his Gatotsu stance.

"_I'll kill you!_" Yatsume bellowed for the third time, getting into a stance of his own.

"How ironic . . ." Sano trailed off as he, Megumi, and Kameko surveyed the scene.

"_Hai_ . . . left against left," Kameko finished for him.

"So?" Megumi questioned.

"Huh?" Kameko and Sano chorused.

"I'm asking, who has the advantage?"

"I dunno," Sano shrugged.

"It's really close," Kameko added.

Megumi glared at Sanosuke. "If you don't give me a good answer, I won't treat your right hand."

"Tch." Sano rolled his eyes before continuing. "Lookin' at the length of his arm, that spider guy's got the advantage. But Gatotsu's momentum rivals that of Kenshin's Kuzu-Ryuusen."

"And?" Megumi pressed.

"Fifty-fifty, like Kame-chan said."

"You're useless," Megumi sighed.

"Shut up, but . . ." Sano continued seriously and solemnly, "I can't see him losin' against anyone but Kenshin."

_Me either,_ Kameko silently agreed.

"_I'll kill you!_" Yatsume shouted again.

"I'm sick of hearing that," Saitou stated, narrowing his eyes. "Hurry up and strike, or I'll come for you."

"_I'll kill you!_" Yatsume screamed a final time before Saitou finally charged. As the katana barreled towards him, Yatsume dug his clawed arm into the ground and threw dirt and stones into the air. Kameko saw Saitou's eyes narrow before the two men passed one another, blood splattering in the air.

Everyone looked on to see whose blood it was, and all of their eyes widened as more blood spurted from Saitou's side.

"Hajime-oji-san's Gatotsu was pushed back . . ." Kameko could hear Kaoru echoing a similar statement, and she and Kenshin explained, "The dirt Yatsume-san threw with his left arm just slightly slowed the Gatotsu's momentum."

"But even that slight amount was enough to affect the strike's outcome," Sano finished in comprehension.

"Earthen Fortress!" Yatsume snarled. "A gold-mining clan is always protected by the earth! It is impossible for any strike to maintain its full strength when it comes against this wall of earth and the blow from my left arm! As long as I have this left arm, formed by body shaping, the earth and the shadows are within my grasp. It's already been fifteen years since I left the clan to chase Battousai . . ." Yatsume turned around towards Kenshin. "Now is my moment of fulfillment! I will make you greatly regret rudely poking your nose into my business!"

"But . . ." Kameko narrowed her eyes. "Hajime-oji-san is far from defeated."

Saitou stepped out of the dust, smirking. "Even though you're merely a freak, you still need to have limits to your stupidity." He went into a different Gatotsu stance. "You fool."

"You dare still call me a freak!"

"Hmm. You react to freak, but not fool. Perhaps you're self-conscious about actually being one?"

"I'm really going to kill you now!" Yatsume roared.

"I told you—I'm tired of hearing that," Saitou reiterated, narrowing his eyes. "Let's go."

He charged again, this time with a different Gatotsu. "You still plan to use that move?" Yatsume taunted, burying his claws into the ground again. "The result will be the same, no matter how many times you try it!" He tossed the earth into the air. "This earthen fortress will not be breached!"

Saitou's face was determined as he focused his Gatotsu towards Yatsume. "Gatotsu on the tip of his left arm!" Megumi cried out.

"The one place that is unprotected by the wall!" Kaoru and Kameko realixed.

"Hah! So what?" Yatsume squeezed his claws, stopping the Gatotsu's momentum. "You are quite resourceful to identify this target after a single exchange, but, unfortunately for you, my left arm moves faster and more precisely than a machine!"

"You're the unfortunate one. My plan has just begun."

Kameko recognized the air whirling around the Wolf of Mibu. "The final form of the Gatotsu . . ."

"I just can't see him losin' to anyone but Kenshin," Sano stated again.

"_Gatotsu Zeroshiki!_"

_So fast, just like last time!_ Kameko marveled at the attack as Saitou's katana stabbed right through Yatsume's palm, all the way through to his elbow. The force of the attack sent the long clawed arm man sprawling back, howling in pain.

"Ugh . . ." Megumi wrinkled her nose.

"What a move," Sano remarked. "It missed against Shishio, so I didn't know it was so powerful . . ."

"Stop crying so loud. How pathetic," Saitou scoffed. "Be thankful your shoulder didn't fly off." He approached Yatsume. "I have no need to use full strength against a freak."

"The victor is clear . . ."

Kameko trailed off and her eyes widened as Yatsume suddenly pushed Saitou's katana deeper into his arm. _What on earth is he . . . ?_

"What?" Megumi covered her mouth in horror. "He pushed the sword in to act as a splint . . ."

"You plan to continue?"

"Of course! I have lived these past fifteen years to kill Battousai!" Yatsume yelled. "I would rather die than head back without fighting him!"

Saitou wasn't moved. "Then hurry up and die."

"Shut up!" Suddenly, Yatsume leapt into the hole he'd made in the dojo roof.

". . . My, my," Saitou murmured, glancing back at where Yatsume had retreated.

As quickly as he'd left, the clawed man came back. "Let's go!"

"Hmph." Dust flew into the air, obscuring Yatsume from view.

"He's going underground," Kameko realized.

"It must be hard with that arm . . ." Sano added.

Saitou lit a cigarette and calmly took a drag as he glanced around. ". . . What comes after the spider plays the mole?"

". . . A containment field," Kenshin stated.

"What?" Kaoru turned to the rurouni.

"Good intuition, Battousai," came a voice from beneath everyone's feet. "Explosive mines! Explosive powders are packed into a clay pot, creating an underground bomb known in mainland China since the Ming Dynasty! They explode when stepped on . . . or when I activate them." There was a malicious pause. "Just like this—"

The ground on either side of Saitou exploded into dust, smoke, and stones, even sending debris in the others' direction. Megumi raised an arm to shield herself while Kameko noted, "Those are fierce explosions."

"Yeah, you can't make a careless move," Sano agreed. "Your legs'll be blown off if you make a mistake."

"How's the fear of not knowing where they might explode?" Yatsume taunted. "And the fear of not being able to move even a step? And the fear of being attacked from underground? Hya ha ha ha! Watch carefully, Battousai—one more person who got involved in your life will die!"

"Unfortunately, this one does not plan on letting anyone within sight die, that he does not," Kenshin responded, steadfast as ever.

"Do not regret those words." There was a pause as the voice shifted to Saitou. "Here I come. This is your end. I will ignite all the bombs at once! And simultaneously—" A large amount of raucous explosions rocked the battlefield, shielding Saitou and Yatsume from view. "—here I come!"

"From above!" Sano yelled as Yatsume rocketed into the sky, above all the debris from the detonations.

Kameko's eyes widened as she looked into the sky, as well. "And even higher—!"

Yatsume's eyes did the same as he realized someone was behind him. "Huh?"

"It's so obvious," Saitou scoffed, one arm restraining Yatsume's clawed one, the other gripping his head and keeping it in place. "Fool."

Yatsume screamed as he and Saitou fell to the ground, the clawed man face-first, and one of his fangs cracked and skittered across the ground.

"Why don't you give this back?" Saitou lifted Yatsume's clawed arm. "This sword is worth too much to let it rust in a freak's blood."

Yatsume screamed again, a truly horrible one, as an equally hair-raising ripping sound came from Saitou yanking his katana out of the clawed arm. Megumi, Kaoru, and Kameko all flinched and looked away.

"Someone who loses sight of the big picture by living in a personal battle does not qualify for my Aku-Soku-Zan . . . but if you'd rather be dead, I'll grant your wish." Saitou raised his katana. "_Die_."

_Is Hajime-oji-san actually going to . . . ?_ Before Kameko could finish the thought, Kenshin stepped forward and grabbed the sword hilt.

"What is the meaning of this?" Saitou asked, glancing at the rurouni.

"This one will not let anyone within sight die, that he will not," Kenshin repeated resolutely, keeping eye contact. "As was just stated."

The two rivals held their stare for a few moments before Saitou pulled his sword away and flicked blood off it. "How pathetic, to be saved by the target of your revenge."

"Yatsume . . ." Kenshin looked down at the clawed man. "If you wish to fight this one, heal your wounds and come back. This was originally a personal affair between us, that it was . . . a duel will always be accepted. However . . . if it is possible, travel north to live for your clan. You, who can command the earth at will, would be a great aid to them, that you would."

Yatsume made some indiscernible sounds before bowing his head, arms hitting the ground. Kenshin looked down at him sympathetically, then turned away. "Megumi-dono, tend to his wounds, _onegai_."

Megumi looked a bit surprised before nodding and replying, "Oh . . . yes."

Kameko let out a breath she wasn't aware she'd been holding. _The last one, defeated as well . . . then this is it._

"You are very persuasive, as usual," Saitou commented. "But how do you plan on convincing that sky captain?" Kenshin was silent, and then the Wolf of Mibu continued, looking up at the last occupied hot air balloon, "Ah, well. This finally means that the real deal is coming down."

"Just as requested, the six on the ground've been defeated—it's your turn next!" Sano shouted towards the final balloon. "Come down, captain in the sky!"

Everyone's eyes had turned to the balloon, as well, waiting. ". . . Not even the slightest movement," Kaoru said worriedly.

"He's up so high though," Kameko responded. "It'll probably take him time to release enough gas to finally come down."

The kunoichi and Sano looked at one another before Sano nodded slightly and walked behind everyone. _Probably just to tell Hajime-oji-san to stay out of Kenshin-san's fight,_ Kameko thought with a small smile. _Which he was going to do anyway, but Sano wants to make sure._

The kunoichi continued to stare up at the balloon, waiting for any type of movement. A few minutes later, her eyes widened thanks the her kunoichi senses. "He's starting to move!" she gasped, getting everyone's attention. "He's coming down!"

Sanosuke looked up firmly. "This is finally it . . ."

**A/N: Review lots guys, I'll try updating as many times as possible before my brother's surgery :) I believe the only translation for this chapter is oji-san, meaning uncle :)**


	10. Finding the Answer: Kenshin vs Enishi

**A/N: Here's the next chapter guys (fastest update ever for me? Maybe! LOL)—Kenshin vs. Enishi (well, part 1 ;) Hope you guys like it! Things are heating up everywhere now ;)**

**Thanks a bunch for wishing my brother good luck, he was pleasantly shocked when I told him lol xD ****Airheadninja****, ****Guest****, ****CrazyCreator33****, ****Nyx'sBlackRose****, ****UneFilleFrancaise****, and ****saitou's lover****, thank you so much for reviewing the last chapter! :)**

**Disclaimer: Nothing is mine except my OCs.**

**Opposites Attract: The Jinchuu Arc**

**Chapter 10: Finding the Answer: Kenshin vs Enishi**

Upon seeing the hot air balloon descend, Kenshin closed his eyes briefly before beckoning to Kaoru. "Kaoru-dono. The sakabatou, _onegai_."

Kaoru smiled and approached the rurouni with his sword. "Yes. Here . . ." She handed him the sakabatou before piping up timidly, "Hey, Kenshin . . . we've finally reached the new era, after many painful struggles. I wish everyone could achieve happiness . . ."

Kenshin rested the sakabatou hilt against his shoulder and smiled, gentle reassurance warming his voice. "The new era has just begun, that it has."

Kameko smiled at the tone; it was working. "You can do it, Kenshin-san! Good luck!"

Sanosuke clenched his fists, grinning confidently. "All right! Go settle this for good!"

Megumi held up her medicine chest. "I'll heal any wounds you may receive!"

"Hajime-oji-san?"

"Hey, you say somethin' too!"

"Yes, just one word!"

"Hmm?"

All three of them had turned to Saitou expectantly, who was lighting a new cigarette. "Well. Good luck with that," he said shortly, and the others sweatdropped.

Even Yahiko offered his moral support. "Don't you lose . . ." he managed in his almost unconscious state, chestnut eyes still closed. "I'll smack you . . . if you lose . . ."

Kenshin smiled again. "Get some rest now," he ordered, but gently. "There will be training as usual tomorrow, that there will . . ."

The smile was replaced by a serious, solemn look as Kenshin approached Enishi, who had landed and was waiting. Kameko could see their lips begin to move, but she couldn't hear any of it, as hard as she strained to hear even with her kunoichi senses. _I wonder what they're talking about . . . Enishi-san looks pleased about something, and Kenshin-san looks the same._

"What are they saying?" Megumi wondered aloud a few moments after Kameko had thought the same thing.

"They're speakin' too softly," Sano complained. "I can't hear 'em."

"Even I can't," Kameko admitted. She glanced at Kaoru, not surprised to find her looking incredibly worried.

Suddenly, Enishi whisked off his jacket and cloak, and within it was something long and thin wrapped in white cloth. He began to speak again, still too quietly for anyone but Kenshin to hear. Then, he unwrapped the white cloth and withdrew an incredibly long sword. _No way . . ._ Kameko gasped. _That sword . . ._

"It must have arrived from the continent," Megumi guessed. "From China?"

"It's pretty long," Sano observed. "What kinda sword is it?"

"_Iie . . ._" Kaoru and Kameko said at the same time.

"What?" Megumi looked at the two seventeen-year-olds curiously.

"The finish is from the continent . . ." Kaoru agreed.

"But that blade is definitely a Japanese sword," Kameko finished. Both girls' eyes were wide. _How on earth did Enishi-san get a sword like that?_

"Correct," Saitou confirmed, raising the cigarette to his lips. "It is a Japanese sword, but looking at the length, it's not the _uchigatana_, the most common sword since the Edo period. It is the _tachi_, common up to the warring states era."

"What does that mean?" Megumi asked.

"It could be just a bluff," Sano suggested. "The other five've all been dubious characters."

"Maybe, but looking at the fine craftsmanship of the blade . . ." Kameko trailed off worriedly.

"I don't think it's a bluff," Kaoru finished for her, equally as concerned.

"Quit panicking. It's annoying." Kameko and Kaoru both looked back at Saitou. "It is the norm in battle to not know the enemy's ability. What's important is to have the strength to be able to crush an enemy, whatever their ability." He then turned his amber gaze to the kunoichi and raised an eyebrow very slightly. "A kunoichi like you should know that by now, _kame_."

"_H-hai_," Kameko responded uncertainly, a strange warm feeling blossoming inside her at hearing her uncle's (admittedly annoying) nickname after so long. _I actually missed Hajime-oji-san calling me 'kame'. Who would've thought?_

"True . . ." Sano echoed. "Unless he's above _Shishio's_ level, Kenshin'll never lose."

"I agree with that," Kameko added. "There's no way Enishi-san's stronger than Shishio . . ."

Enishi did a few spins with his long sword, resting it on his shoulder in a foreign stance. He and Kenshin began talking amongst one another again, and then finally Megumi, Sanosuke, Kameko, Kaoru, and Saitou heard something as Enishi shouted, "Begin!"

Enishi charged, swinging with his long sword. Kenshin easily jumped over the strike, unsheathing his sakabatou in midair and crossing swords with his brother-in-law as he reached up to parry the rurouni's downwards slash. When the swords slipped off one another, the impact sent dust and whipping wind in the others' direction, stinging their eyes.

Both swordsmen landed on the ground, and Enishi went on the offensive, sending slice after slice at Kenshin, who dodged each one.

". . . He's not bad . . ." Megumi observed worriedly as they looked on.

"_Iie_, he isn't . . . he knows how to use his muscles and his sword's weight to push speed and impact to the limit," Kameko noted. "That takes a lot of training, especially with longer or dual swords."

"His _kenki_ is not inferior to Kenshin's either," Kaoru added nervously. "That man is a master swordsman."

"So what if he is?" Sano scoffed. "Do I gotta mention Kenshin's the_ grand master?_" He clenched his bandaged fist. "At that level, he's nowhere near Shishio."

"_Hai_, that's still true," Kameko agreed, but she was still biting her lip as she watched the fight.

"I agree with that," Saitou chimed in unexpectedly. "He has potential. He has the training . . . but that's it."

"But if he didn't travel to the continent, if he learned kenjutsu here . . ." Kaoru trailed off apprehensively, squeezing her hands over her chest.

Kenshin and Enishi had stopped fighting yet again. "How halfhearted," Enishi smirked, holding his sword in the ground. "Are you just gauging me? Why don't you reveal some of your Hiten Mitsurugi-Ryuu moves?" His eyes narrowed maliciously. "Or do you need me to show you some of mine?" He picked up his sword again, _kenki_ spiking. "_Then here's one!_"

Enishi swung his sword, but oddly, one of his feet left the ground at the same time. "_What?_" everyone chorused in shock.

The airborne foot kicked into the curve of the blade as Kenshin tried to unsheathe his sword to block the blow. "_Watoujutsu—Shuugeki Tousei!_"

The rurouni crashed into the wall as everyone's eyes widened. "He doubled the force of his sword swing by adding the kick," Saitou explained.

"He's . . . acquired a form of kenjutsu all right!" Sano remarked.

"But _Watoujutsu_ . . . what kind of style is it?" Kameko questioned.

"I've never heard of anything like that either . . ." Kaoru added.

"This is the power I gained over ten years . . . the strength that let me climb to the top from absolute zero . . ." Enishi raised the sword to its fullest height. "The new kenjutsu, perfected in the continent with the tachi brought over from Japan in the ancient days . . . _Watoujutsu_."

"Watou . . ."

"Jutsu . . ."

"A kenjutsu created by the fusion of the speed and sharpness of the Japanese blade and the power and grace of the continent . . ." Kenshin reiterated, standing up.

"Heh heh . . ." Enishi pushed his dark glasses further up the bridge of his nose. "It's a little more complicated than that."

"It must be," Saitou agreed. "That sort of 'power' isn't enough to put him at the top of an organization."

"Besides, how'd a gray-haired acquire kenjutsu like that?" Sano demanded.

"I can't see the whole picture yet . . . there has to be more to it," Kameko said, nibbling on her bottom lip in thought and worry.

Enishi charged again, the metallic clang of sword clashing with sword ringing out in the air. Kameko saw their lips begin to move again, this time being able to make out bits and pieces of what they were saying. "They're talking about something again . . ."

"Can ya hear what it is?" Sano asked.

"Yes . . . now that the direction of the wind has changed," Kaoru nodded. "It sounds like a tale from the past . . ."

Finally, the group heard Enishi's voice; it did seem like he was telling some sort of story, like Kaoru had thought. "Starvation and exhaustion, sickness and wounds . . . finally, the child could not keep going. Then . . . a man and woman came to the child's aid. The couple was Japanese, residing in Shanghai in order to research the literature of the continent. To put it simply, they were intellectuals. With nutritious meals and devoted medical care, the child held onto his life."

"I see, the couple became his guardians in Shanghai," Megumi nodded. "It would be hard for a child to survive alone in Shanghai."

"The child, in an unfamiliar act, thanked the gods . . ." Enishi grinned manically. "_For granting him such foolish prey._ The child killed the couple and took their jewelry and riches so he would have no monetary troubles . . ."

"What . . . ?" Megumi trailed off in disbelief.

"How could he . . . ?" Kameko gasped.

"He's rotten to the core!" Sano growled.

"The child went looking for a suitable weapon in the household. A strong power—this was how the child and Watoujutsu met." Enishi ran his hand down the long blade of his sword. "It's self-taught, so there's a unique personal twist to it, but by the time he finished growing, he was second to none as a practitioner of Watoujutsu." He smirked again. "Now, here is the question—stealing from the family would have been enough, why did the child massacre them?"

". . . Enough . . ." Kenshin requested quietly.

Enishi continued as if he hadn't heard the rurouni, his eyes large and taunting. "Answer one—the family resisted. Answer two—the child was a psychopath. Answer three—for the child, whose sister was killed by a merciless _hitokiri_, destroying his happiness, the sight of a family living in happiness was unbearable."

"Stop talking, Enishi!" Kenshin ordered, this time much louder.

Enishi grinned snidely. "The correct answer is, without debate, number three."

"_Hiten Mitsurugi-Ryuu—Ryuukansen!_"

Enishi wasn't fazed by the spiraling sword strike coming towards him, and he raised his own sword. "Your flame is growing. But a flame of that size is easily blown back by the wind from the continent, burning you!" He slammed the very bottom of his sword into Kenshin's blade, stopping the attack, then brought the hilt behind his back and into the other hand, the blade impaling the rurouni's shoulder. "_Watoujutsu—Kaishi Tousei!_"

_So fast—!_ "Kenshin-san!"

"Kenshin!"

"Ken-san!"

"Fool," Saitou snorted. "That move is most useful as a counter attack. You used it as an initial attack, and got it countered."

"Kenshin!" This time, it was Kaoru who cried out.

Enishi suddenly turned back, his eyes focused right on Kaoru as he began to speak again. "After ten years, the child finally found the _hitokiri_ who killed his sister." He took a step towards Kaoru, and Kameko's eyes narrowed when she realized his intention. The kunoichi stepped silently closer to the dojo master, one hand hovering over one of her sakabatou hilts. _Not on my watch . . ._

"The _hitokiri_ had changed his name, found an 'after', and was living happily." Enishi's pupils contracted. "And the young man . . . could not bear this."

Kenshin stepped in front of everyone, planting his sakabatou blade into the ground before Enishi. "This is a personal battle between this one and you, that it is . . . there is no need to involve anyone else . . ." The rurouni's eyes hardened. "You will be stopped here, that you will."

Enishi smirked, tapping his sword on his shoulder. "Fine. The chitchat is over. It's the real deal starting now."

"It is finally time . . ."

Kameko began to hear Saitou talking behind her, recognizing it as a warning to Kaoru. _If there's one second that Kenshin-san is down, kami-sama forbid, Enishi-san won't hesitate. He'll try to get Kaoru-chan . . ._ She clenched her fists. _I won't let him, not on my life . . ._

"What are you two mumbling about back there?" Megumi looked at a flustered Kaoru sternly. "You're the one who needs to be watching most."

"Hey, Jou-chan, if you've got time to be zonin' out, give him a cheer or two," Sano suggested.

"It wouldn't hurt, Kaoru-chan," Kameko encouraged her.

"Umm . . ."

"I don't think it matters. Something as little as that won't make a difference," Saitou proclaimed. "Don't look at me, fool," he scoffed when Kaoru turned to him, anxious.

"If we leave 'em alone, they'll just keep starin' at each other for a while. Yell somethin' to get things started, Jou-chan," Sano coaxed her.

Kaoru took a deep breath. ". . . Then . . ." She cupped her hands around her mouth. "_Go for it, Kenshin!_"

The effect was instantaneous—all of a sudden, Kenshin and Enishi charged at one another, metal hitting metal again. Enishi slipped his blade off the rurouni's and said something to him before shouting, "_Watoujutsu!_"

"He's comin'!" Sano yelled.

Enishi brought the blade across his palm and pushed it off as he brought it over his head for a strike. "_Shouha Tousei!_"

The blade crashed into the ground as Kenshin leapt, starting his own attack. "_Hiten Mitsurugi-Ryuu—Ryuutsuisen!_"

"That's it," Enishi murmured, looking smug. "The mid-flight move worthy of the name of Hiten Mitsurugi-Ryuu! How I've wanted to defeat this . . ."

Kameko's eyes widened as Enishi put one foot on his extended katana. _What is he doing? Could he have a move to counter Kenshin-san's Ryuutsuisen?_ Then, Enishi jumped off, flying into the air as high as Kenshin and striking the rurouni's chin with his katana. "Ha! _Watoujutsu—Chouten Tousei!_"

"Kenshin!" Sano and Kaoru chorused.

"Ken-san!"

"Kenshin-san!"

Suddenly, the rurouni somersaulted through the air, landing on the underside of one of the abandoned hot air balloons. Everyone's eyes, even Enishi's, widened. "If your skill level is insufficient to determine when your opponent is serious, then this duel is over right now, that it is. _Hiten Mitsurugi-Ryuu—Kuzu-Ryuusen!_"

Kenshin came down with the god-speed he was known for, hitting Enishi all nine times in the attack. "He did it!" Sano shouted.

"All nine strikes struck him precisely," Saitou noticed.

"The tide's turned in an instant," Kameko added, smiling a little. _Of course. Kenshin-san can't lose . . ._

Kaoru looked relieved. "Ken . . ." She trailed off as they saw Enishi standing, grinning manically despite his wounds.

". . . It didn't do anythin'?" Sano asked in disbelief.

"No, those wounds . . . it must have had some effect," Megumi disagreed worriedly.

"But it looks like . . . he isn't feeling any pain . . ." Kameko realized, eyes wide.

"It seems like he was already in the state of mind over body, even before the fight started," Saitou commented as Enishi talked to Kenshin again. "In order to stop that man without killing him, Battousai will have to use the move that will render him completely immobile."

"The secret move . . ." Sano and Kameko chorused. "_Amakakeru Ryuu no Hirameki._"

". . . In a state of mind over body, even before the fight started . . ." Kaoru echoed anxiously.

"Then in order to defeat Yukishiro Enishi . . ." Sano trailed off.

"If this turns into a blow-by-blow fight, with that opponent, the duel will eventually become a death match," Saitou explained. "The outcome of the duel will determine the outcome of life and death. Life to the victor. Death to the defeated."

"Dammit . . ." Sano clenched his jaw. "If Kenshin agreed with that kinda deadly outcome, he wouldn't be fightin' so hard to avoid it! Then . . . there's only one way . . ."

"Now . . ." Enishi spun his sword. "At least I now know that you possess powers worthy of an opponent. I still have to perform the completion of the _jinchuu_." He stopped the spinning blade and held it in a stance with the sword upright behind him. "Now let's put an end to this. Unleash it! The move you used to destroy Gein's _karakuri_ suit. The secret of Hiten Mitsurugi-Ryuu!"

"Forgive this one . . ." Kenshin sighed a bit and began to sheathe his sword. "Enishi. Your feelings for Tomoe are not wrong, that they are not . . . your grudge against this one is also not wrong, that it is not. . . but the way you've lived the last fifteen years is definitely wrong." His sword was fully sheathed and he went into the familiar stance. "This one will now cut it away."

The air around them whirled as both swordsmen's _kenki_ spiked. "That unusual stance . . ." Saitou said as his cigarette became useless with the wind. "He challenged the secret move, and now must intend to strike back with something just as powerful."

"It's all the same," Sano said determinedly. "Amakakeru Ryuu no Hirameki knows no defeat. It's brought down the most powerful foes up to now."

"Kenshin-san has the utmost confidence in it," Kameko agreed. "That's why he would use it at this moment—but . . ."

"A . . . are you all right?"

Kameko turned to Megumi, who was looking concernedly at Kaoru. The kunoichi's eyes widened at the trembling, frozen sight of the dojo master. "Kaoru-chan! You're pale blue all the way to your lips!"

"B-but . . ." Kaoru stammered, staring at Kenshin. Sano, Megumi, and Kameko followed her gaze; they all seemed to be thinking the same thing. _I don't think Enishi-san's stronger than Shishio, but . . ._ The kunoichi glanced at the white-haired man. _There's something different in the kenki he gives off . . . Kenshin-san said he'd find his 'answer' for atonement, but . . . I don't think he's found that answer. Will it make a difference . . . ?_

"Onee-chan . . ." Enishi smiled fondly, then looked up at Kenshin. "As long as my onee-chan smiles at me, I will be stronger than anyone—than anything. Battousai, in your mind, is my onee-chan smiling on you?"

Kenshin closed his eyes, painfully. "She is not smiling right now, that she is not . . . but . . . this one believes she will smile upon him when this battle ends . . ." The rurouni opened his eyes, amethyst shining with willpower. "Let's go."

The air around the two swordsmen was charged and tense as they both charged. Kenshin unsheathed his sword in the familiar attack. "_Hiten Mitsurugi-Ryuu Ougi—Amakakeru Ryuu no Hirameki!_"

Enishi crouched and unleashed his own secret move. "_Watoujutsu Ougi—Kofuku Zettousei!_"

It appeared as if they had both missed, but Kameko, Saitou, and Sanosuke knew better. _Now it's coming . . . the vacuum and the ultimate second strike!_

Kenshin swung from the top while Enishi brought his sword up to meet the rurouni's. No one gained ground for a few moments until there was a series of strikes that sent both swordsmen sliding back. The others waited, holding their breaths, and Kameko smelled blood and heard it splash against the floor. Her head swung to Enishi immediately, but his bleeding was controlled and under his chest. The kunoichi's eyes widened in horror. _Iie! It can't be! IT CAN'T!_

Blood erupted from Kenshin's chest, and his hiss of pain was shocked, as well. He collapsed to the floor, crimson spilling all around him.

"I can't believe it . . ." Kameko gasped, heart pounding. "It's almost as if Amakakeru Ryuu no Hirameki didn't affect him at all! Neither strike nor the vacuum—"

"Why? Why was his sword faster than Amakakeru Ryuu no Hirameki?" Sano shouted, clenching his fists. "Why didn't the vacuum created by the first strike affect him?"

"_Ahou_," Saitou flicked his useless cigarette to the ground. "It did affect him . . . that battle stance, crouched down to the earth . . . that allows him to maintain his offensive stance by using the support from the earth to bear the shockwave created by Amakakeru Ryuu no Hirameki's first strike. And by using the sucking vacuum as a counter method, he is able to drive in his own semi-circle strike sooner than the full circle of the second strike. Even the talons of a dragon in flight can't reach the crouching tiger."

"You're good," Enishi told Saitou, grinning. "You determined all that in an instant. But, it's actually much simpler than that. The important part is that my onee-chan _smiled_ on me."

Enishi looked down at Kenshin forebodingly. "How's that Battousai? Does the wound you gave my onee-chan hurt? But onee-chan must have hurt more. It would defeat the purpose to finish you off here. So I merely rendered you immobile. Now the preparations are done. I am beginning the true _jinchuu_!"

All of a sudden, thick clouds began billowing all over the yard. "Smoke?"

"It's plain smoke, don't worry," Gein assured them. "Unlike Otowa's, it doesn't contain poison."

Enishi's voice could be heard through the smoke. 'This will prevent unnecessary interruptions."

"Kenshin!" Kaoru cried.

"After all, death is only a momentary pain." Kameko tensed as Enishi began walking towards them. "Simple death will not satisfy my sister's grudge, nor my hate. You took her fiancé from her . . . you took my sister from me . . ." Enishi's gaze raised to meet a petrified Kaoru's. "So now it is my turn . . ."

**A/N: Cliffhanger! Haha sorry about that guys but it had to be done, this chapter was wearing on pretty long :P I'll try updating as much as possible before my bro's surgery! Review lots please ^^ And finally, translations!**

_**Onegai—**_**please**

_**Oji-san**_**—uncle**

_**Iie**_**—no**

_**Kame—**_**turtle, an 'affectionate' nickname Saitou's given Kameko**

_**Hai—**_**yes**

_**Kenki—**_**swordsman spirit**

_**Shuugeki Tousei—**_**Kicking Sword Rush**

_**Hitokiri—**_**manslayer**

_**Kaishi Tousei—**_**Destructive Palm Sword Rush**

_**Ougi**_**—secret**

_**Onee-chan—**_**big sister**

_**Kofuku Zettousei—**_**Crouching Tiger Sword Rush**

_**Ahou—**_**idiot**


	11. Time for Jinchuu

**A/N: Probably my last update in a while :( Well, at least it's not a cliffie (I think :P). Thanks again for your well wishes for my bro, he really appreciates it and he's still pleasantly shocked, lol xD And thank you to ****CrazyCreator33****, ****Airheadninja****, ****Sleepyreader319****, ****Nyx'sBlackRose****, ****UneFilleFrancais****, ****saitou's lover****, ****Bonnia****, ****pokemonjkl****, and ****Blessine**** for reviewing the last chapter! :) I'm encouraged by your support ^^ At the rate you guys are reviewing, we might have 100 reviews by chapter 13 or so! Which is crazy and totally unexpected :P**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing except my OCs.**

**Opposites Attract: The Jinchuu Arc**

**Chapter 11: Time for Jinchuu**

"I told you," Saitou deadpanned.

"He's coming here!" Megumi exclaimed.

"You fiend!" Sanosuke snarled as he stepped closer to Kaoru.

"Kaoru-chan, get back!" Kameko warned as she unsheathed one of her sakabatou and took the other side of the dojo master.

"You're all annoying," Enishi said as he got closer. "All but Kamiya Kaoru, step away."

"Stop . . ." came the weak voice of a shadow in the smoke.

Enishi glanced behind him and pushed his dark glasses further up the bridge of his nose. "You can still get up? Just stay down. If you end up dying, my _jinchuu_ will be—"

The white-haired man was cut off as a fist met his cheek and his dark glasses flew off as he crashed to the ground. "That will not be allowed, Enishi, that it will not . . ." Kenshin clenched his fist. "Even if Tomoe's spirit truly smiled upon you, it will not be allowed!"

"Kenshin!" Kaoru cried, tears streaming down her cheeks. "Kenshin!"

"Idiot! You need to start running!" Megumi scolded her.

"We'll take care of Kenshin!" Sano turned to the girls and ordered, "Kameko, Megumi, take Kaoru and run!"

"_Hai!_" Kameko nodded and grabbed Kaoru's hand as she cried Kenshin's name again. _I'm not letting anything happen to her . . . even if he kills me . . . _"Kaoru-chan, Megumi-san, let's go!"

"And be careful," Sano added, holding Kameko's gaze before a gust of wind blew smoke between them. She shook her head to refocus and began tugging at Kaoru's arm, urging her in the opposite direction, but it the dojo master refused to move.

"Come! Hurry, don't waste any time!" Megumi grabbed Kaoru around the waist before she bolted back to the battlefield.

"But what about Kenshin?" Kaoru cried, clutching Megumi's arm.

"Get a hold of yourself!" Megumi smacked Kaoru's cheek, to both her and Kameko's surprise, and as the dojo master held it, wide-eyed, she said sternly, "You said so yourself . . . if you died, Ken-san would blame himself and suffer, so you couldn't die, no matter what! But that's about to happen!"

The slap seemed to have made Kaoru realize the severity of the situation, and when the kunoichi pulled her hand, she followed, pulling out her wooden sword. As the three young women made their way through the smoke, Kameko could hear the tell-tale sounds of a fight—and it wasn't Kenshin's shouts of pain she was hearing. She was once again in awe. _Only Kenshin-san . . . for Kaoru-chan, he overcame his limits . . ._

Just as the thought passed through her mind, there was an incredibly unsettling crash. The sound put Kameko so on edge that she stopped, Kaoru and Megumi looking at her worriedly. Then came the revealing roars of, "_BATTOUSAI! BATTOUSAI!_"

"_Iie!_" Kameko gasped, hearing Kenshin cry out in pain. _It's Kujiranami—he wasn't out of it after all!_ Her eyes widened in horror. _Then that means—_ She could hear Kenshin shouting Enishi's name, and then footsteps that grew increasingly louder.

"Kameko-chan?"

Kameko shook her head and let go of Kaoru's hand, unsheathing her other sakabatou. "Kaoru-chan, Megumi-san, we have to get out of here! _Now!_ I'll cover you both and Sano and Hajime-oji-san will take care of the rest!"

"The winds have changed for the worse!" Megumi exclaimed as a strong breeze began blowing the clouds of smoke around. "Hurry! It's over if we get caught up in the smoke!"

"Wait!" Kaoru cried suddenly.

Megumi and Kameko slowed down and looked at her incredulously. "Kaoru-chan, what now?"

"Yahiko!" Kaoru reminded them. "I can't leave Yahiko behind!"

"Fine!" Megumi sighed. "I will be sure to bring Yahiko, so you hurry and get out of h—"

"Ack!"

Kameko, Kaoru, and Megumi shielded their eyes as a sudden cloud of smoke barreled towards them. With a few weak coughs, the two seventeen-year-olds looked around. "Megumi?" Kaoru called.

"Megumi-san!" Kameko tried. "Are you—"

The kunoichi's eyes widened with horror when she saw a tall figure who definitely wasn't Megumi approaching them through the smoke. She glanced at Kaoru; she'd seen it—or rather _him_— too. Kameko stepped right in front of the dojo master, snapping her sakabatou together into the tsurugi for better range.

Enishi emerged from the smoke, sword balanced on his shoulder. There was definitely more blood and more wounds on him than when the three had left, but his eyes showed none of it. "Move aside."

"Never!" Kameko narrowed her eyes. "Kaoru-chan, run!"

Kaoru's eyes widened. "B-but, Kameko-chan, you don't think you can—"

"I don't care, Kaoru-chan! I'll hold him off, just _go!_ Now!"

Kaoru seemed halfway between leaving and staying, until Kameko pushed her away with her shoulder. "Kaoru-chan, _onegai!_ For Kenshin-san if not me, _run!_"

Kameko exhaled a little as she heard Kaoru's footsteps fading, but the battle was far from over. She spun her tsurugi as she saw Enishi move out of the corner of her eye and shouted, "_Kougyokuseki Ryuu-ken!_"

Enishi dodged the golden metal shockwave, but it was heavy enough to push him away from Kaoru. "You've no chance," he stated, moving his sword from his shoulder. "Even without Izanagi's Daggers of Lightning coursing inside of you, you had no chance."

"Like I said, I don't care," Kameko repeated, spinning her tsurugi. "And I know that. But my purpose isn't to defeat you." She held the white-haired man's gaze pointedly. "That's for Kenshin-san to do."

Enishi smirked. "You have spirit, at least. If you expect to fight me, don't beg for mercy when I _kill _you. _Watoujutsu—Shouha Tousei!_"

Kameko leapt over the attack, but narrowly, which reminded her of the electric buzz in her body bothering her senses and reflexes. _I just need to overcome it for a little while . . . enough for Sano and Hajime-oji-san to help Kenshin-san . . ._ "_Amejisuto Ryuu-ken!_"

Enishi evaded again, and as he whirled around, the kunoichi's eyes widened as she began to descend. _Che! I have to get out of his way!_

"_Watoujutsu—Kaishi Tousei!_"

Kameko didn't even have time to think when she landed as the long blade stabbed through her abdomen. The kunoichi hissed in pain as Enishi let the entire length of the blade slice through her before brutally wrenching it out, letting her collapse at his feet. Her tsurugi clattered to the ground as blood spurted from her mouth.

"Too easy." Enishi flicked blood off his long sword and began walking into the smoke.

"_Iie_, wait! _Stop!_" Kameko tried to get up but only managed to stretch an arm out before pain seared through her and forced her back down; she could feel her strength draining fast. A frustrated tear began trickling down her cheek as she hit a fist into the ground feebly in defeat. "_Iie_, K-Kaoru-chan . . ."

"_Kameko-dono!_"

The kunoichi felt someone kneel next to her and lift her slightly, surprised and relieved to see amethyst eyes. "K-Kenshin-san . . . help K-Kaoru . . . chan . . . who knows what . . . he'll do . . ."

The rurouni looked into Kameko's half-lidded eyes, conflicted, then briefly clasped one of her hands before setting her down gently and running at his god-speed after Enishi. _Onegai . . . get there in time, Kenshin-san . . ._ she prayed, clasping her hands and closing her eyes as she succumbed to the pain and worry. Rogue tears were dribbling down her cheeks. _Onegai . . ._

Kameko didn't know how long she'd been lying there, flirting with unconsciousness and the occasional sob, when she heard another familiar voice.

"Kameko!" Sanosuke dropped to his knees next to her and growled, "Ugh . . . dammit, that bastard . . ."

Kameko grabbed the ex-fighter-for-hire's bandaged hand and pleaded, "S-Sano . . . Kaoru-chan . . ."

Sano only needed that one name to remember the potential disaster at hand. He immediately stood and scooped the kunoichi into his arms in one fluid motion before breaking into a blind sprint through the smoke. He ran into Megumi on the way, and together they ran to what was left of the dojo after she stopped freaking out over Kameko's wound.

"Kenshin!"

"Ken-san!"

"Kenshin-san!"

All three pairs of eyes widened when they reached the dojo. Kenshin was standing rigidly and his sakabatou clattered to the ground. ". . . What about Hiten Mitsurugi-Ryuu . . ." The rurouni fell to his knees. ". . . what about Himura Kenshin . . . once again . . . this one could not protect the most important person, that he could not . . . Kaoru . . . dono . . ." Though his head was bowed, the tears could be heard in Kenshin's voice. "_Kaoru . . ._"

Tears were streaming down Kameko's cheeks before Kenshin had even spoken; she'd seen the body . . . the _corpse_. Sanosuke subconsciously lowered the kunoichi at the shock of seeing it, and she shuffled as close as she could without letting go of his arm and falling.

Enishi's long sword was embedded in her chest, straight through her heart, and blood was all around her. The very soul in her deep midnight blue eyes, usually full of life and affection, had been sucked hollow—a flame that had been extinguished. And then, ironically, mockingly, on her left cheek . . . a cross-shaped scar, dripping with pearls of crimson. It was, without a doubt, as much as Kameko tried to convince herself otherwise, Kamiya Kaoru.

"K-K-Kaoru-chan . . ." she trembled, clutching Sano's arm like a lifeline and burying her face into his sleeve to find relief for the overwhelming swirl of emotions in her pounding head. "Kaoru . . . ch-chan . . ."

Sano felt the kunoichi's death grip on his arm slack, which brought him out of his state of shock just before she began to fall. With a short curse, he extended his arm just in time to catch her and let her head rest against his chest. The gangly nineteen-year-old's chocolate brown eyes turned back to Kaoru's corpse and prickled. He blinked rapidly to get rid of the feeling. _That . . . that's really Jou-chan . . . it's really Kaoru . . ._ he repeated to himself, the truth hitting him like a brick.

Kenshin stood and began to walk, overcast eyes never meeting Sano or Megumi as he went by. Abruptly, he stopped in front of Sano, head level with the unconscious Kameko's, but the rurouni still refused to raise his gaze. "Take care of her and Yahiko . . . never let this happen to Kameko-dono. Neither of you deserve the pain . . ."

"Why're you sayin' that, Kenshin?" Sano looked to the rurouni, expecting an answer, but he ignored him and kept walking. Cursing, the ex-fighter-for-hire lowered Kameko into Megumi's arms and ran after his friend, stopping at the gate. "Where the hell're you goin'?"

The rurouni kept walking, head lowered silently, sakabatou at his side faithfully. "Dammit, Kenshin, come back here! _Kenshin!_" Sano clenched his fists. "Kenshin . . ."

Kamiya Kaoru's funeral was held the following morning. The amount of people that attended was astounding; it felt like the dojo master had done one good thing or another for nearly everyone in Tokyo. There were neighbors, shop owners, Akabeko employees, police officers, and people Kameko had never seen before. But there was an important person missing: Himura Kenshin. Sanosuke and Megumi had told her when she'd regained consciousness that the rurouni had just walked out of the dojo into the night, and they hadn't heard from him since. Sano had his friends searching the city, but so far, there was no dice. No one had any clue where Kenshin had gone.

The procession was a solemn one. It was quiet because no one really spoke to one another, save for the condolences the occasional person would whisper once he or she passed by the Kenshin-and-Kaoru-less-Kenshingumi. The casket containing the dojo master's body was lowered into the moist soil of the cemetery and covered. For a little while, no one moved, silently paying respect to the grave, but one by one, people began approaching it for some more personal words.

Kameko waited until the last person had left before kneeling before the grave herself. Her throat grew warm and tightened the moment she began to speak. "Kaoru-chan, wherever you may be . . ." The kunoichi was already tearing up. "_Onegai_, be happy . . . you didn't deserve what happened, so that's all I hope for . . . we're going to m-miss you . . ."

Kameko leaned into the familiar embrace gratefully as sobs wracked her body. Sano sighed quietly and held the kunoichi, looking at Kaoru's grave and feeling something trickle down his cheek.

It was said that a person's worth was determined by how many people cried at his or her funeral. Needless to say, there wasn't one pair of dry eyes present that day.

**A/N: This was a kinda short one, but I wanted to get something up before taking my leave :P Review lots please, as always! :) And here are the translations:**

_**Hai—**_**yes**

_**Iie—**_**no**

_**Onegai—**_**please**

_**Kougyokuseki Ryuu-ken—**_**Topaz Dragon Blade**

_**Amejisuto Ryuu-ken—**_**Amethyst Dragon Blade**


	12. Avoiding the End

**A/N: I'm back guys! It felt like a lot more than a week and a half though lol :P Sorry about that! To make up for it, here's a nice and long chapter ;)**

**But thankfully, my little brother's surgery went really well—the first couple days were stressful but we got through it! He's been back from the hospital for three days now and he's feeling great :) Thank you so much for all of your well wishes everyone! We appreciate it :)**

**Thanks a bunch to ****Nyx'sBlackRose****, ****CrazyCreator33****, ****pokemonjkl****, ****Blessine****, ****Bonnia****, ****UneFilleFrancais****, and ****saitou's lover**** for reviewing! :) Thanks so much as always for the continued support, you guys are the BEST! :D**

**Random note: I just made a Tumblr guys (yes I'm late lol)—I'll probably be posting whenever I'm about to update a fanfic or something, so if you want to follow me, take the spaces out of this link here: www . tumblr blog / meerca16 :)**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing except Kichida Kameko and the rest of my OCs.**

**Opposites Attract: The Jinchuu Arc**

**Chapter 12: Avoiding the End**

"Why . . . ?" Tsubame sobbed, tears pouring out of her deep brown eyes. "How did it turn out this way . . . ?"

It had been a few hours since Kaoru's funeral; the members of the Kenshingumi that remained had all gathered at the dojo, sitting outside in the backyard and reminiscing in their sorrow. Yahiko's chestnut eyes were hooded with contemplation. Megumi, having the useful ability to keep her tears in check, sat on Tsubame's right, her red lips pressed together tightly. Sanosuke was leaning against the gate, chin in hand as he stared off into space. Kameko sat on the little girl's left, and she was constantly blinking back tears, though a few would escape every so often. The wound Enishi had given her was constantly throbbing, as if a reminder that was mocking the situation. They were all still in shock; everything felt so surreal, but the truth was beginning to sink in: Kamiya Kaoru was not with them anymore.

"Sano-san, we found him!"

Everyone snapped out of their trances, heads swiveling to the entrance to the dojo, where a tall young man with short dark hair stood, panting. _One of Sano's friends . . ._ "We found Himura!"

"Where?" Sano demanded as they all jumped to their feet. "Where's Kenshin?"

"We need to at least tend to his wounds!" Megumi exclaimed.

"Hold on." The young man's gaze flicked to the girls and Yahiko hesitantly. "The women and children shouldn't come." He met their questioning eyes honestly. "He's in _Rakuninmura_ . . . the Fallen Village."

Rakuninmura was known as the Fallen Village for a reason, as the Kenshingumi soon found out. To put it lightly, it was not the pleasantest of places. Houses made of rubble that were falling apart regardless, dirt-encrusted men with varying injuries and bloodstains lurking in every shadowy corner . . . and at the very end, slumped against rickety wooden slabs, was Kenshin.

It wasn't hard to spot the redheaded rurouni, but Kameko almost missed him because of how weak his _chi_ was and his chained sakabatou. Yahiko approached him first, but Kenshin didn't lift a finger in acknowledgement, even when the rest walked up in shock. Something was clearly, ominously wrong.

"Let's go!" Sano commanded, clenching his fists and holding his chin up. "Stand up! We're gonna go kill that bastard Yukishiro Enishi!"

Kameko's eyes widened. _What is he saying!_

"We'll avenge Kaoru!" Sano shouted determinedly. "It ain't gonna bring her back—but we can't just back down, dammit! This can't be the end!"

The ex-fighter-for-hire paused, breathing hard and expecting some sort of reply from the rurouni, but he received none. Sano grabbed Kenshin roughly by the front of his red kimono, raising him to eye level. "_Kenshin!_ Why don't ya say somethin', dammit!"

Finally, the rurouni spoke up in a weak voice, eyes devoid of emotion. "No . . . more . . . too . . . tired . . ."

Everyone's eyes widened in shock as they comprehended what Kenshin had uttered. Rage lit Sano's chocolate brown orbs. "Y . . . _you!_"

"Sanosuke!"

The next thing they all knew, Kenshin was crashing to the floor, blood splattering from his mouth, and Sano stood above his friend-turned-enemy with a raised fist, roaring in fury, "_Bastard!_"

Kameko knew the situation was flying out of hand, and she threw herself at the-ex-fighter-for-hire, grabbing his raised arm intent on harm and pushing on his chest with her free hand. Her wound began stinging. "_Sano!_ Calm down!"

"I don't know what the story is, young man . . ." The kunoichi cursed mentally as she spotted the skulking men coming out of hiding behind Sano's back. "But even though the newcomer has only been here a few days, he's our companion, on our side. There's no law here, but there is an absolute rule to protect each other . . . we will not allow outsiders to do us harm. If you still plan to carry on, you best be prepared!"

"Hah!" Sano sneered, wrenching his arm from Kameko's grasp and whirling around, fists at the ready. "The rejects lickin' each others' wounds! I'll take on all of you!"

"Stop it, you idiot!" Megumi yelled. "We have Tsubame-chan!"

The kunoichi ran in front of Sano again, pushing on his chest with both of her hands, this time more urgently. She forced the white-hot-blooded nineteen-year-old to meet her gaze. "That's enough, Sanosuke!"

Sano's eyes dimmed, very slightly. His fighting stance slackened, chest heaving, but anger still radiated from his aura.

Innocent little Tsubame stepped closer to the rurouni, tears glistening in her eyes. "Kenshin-san . . ."

"No more . . ." Kenshin repeated weakly, catching everyone's attention. He wobbled as he shakily stood to wipe blood off his mouth, only to fall back into his crouching position. "Too tired . . ." He closed his amethyst eyes painfully. "Let this one . . . rest in peace . . ."

Everyone watched the rurouni, waiting for anything besides silence, but he remained still. It took mere moments for Sanosuke to spit, "Fuck this," and turn on his heel, headed firmly towards the exit. Kameko glanced at the others, getting no response, so she turned to catch up to the ex-fighter-for-hire. _I have to keep an eye on him . . . we can't have an angry Sano running through Tokyo, especially when he's this mad . . ._

Either Sano hadn't noticed the kunoichi behind him or he was completely ignoring her; Kameko decided on the latter. She tailed him, her wound protesting the whole way, silence settled on the boundary of companionable and awkward between the two of them. It wasn't until they reached the Gorotsuki long houses that Sano finally said in gravelly voice, "Get outta here. I'm gonna go get drunk, and I'm sure you don't want nothin' to do with it." He spared a look at her when she didn't move. "What, you don't approve? You gonna tell me not to? Because it's not right, or some crap like that?"

Kameko was taken aback by Sano's sarcastic tone. _Hai, he's definitely angry. I've never seen this side of him, except in battle . . ._ "_Iie_, Sano. I don't mind what you do, and I never have—none of us have! Neither them nor I are the boss of you."

"Really?" The ex-fighter-for-hire turned around fully to level the kunoichi's gaze with his. "Then why the hell're ya still here?"

Kameko had opened her mouth to speak when Sano overrode her. "Lemme guess: you don't want me to raise hell in town." His voice was rising dangerously. "I can take care of myself, goddammit! I ain't stupid, but you all sure treat me like I am! So what if I get angry?"

"Sano—"

"The girl who was like my little sister's dead, and my best friend's practically there himself, and you all expect me to stay _calm?_" Sano snorted. "All you guys do is mourn and cry. That's fine and all, but it ain't my style. It's never _been_ my style. I can't just sit still and let things pass me by, I gotta _do_ somethin' about them!" He jabbed his thumb at his chest. "I'm a man of action. Just 'cause you guys aren't doesn't mean you can all try to control me!"

"Sano, we know that!" Kameko cut in, placing her hands on her hips. _So that's what brought all of this about . . ._ "No one's trying to control you! Is it bad that we just . . . _I_ just . . ." The kunoichi blushed a little. "That I just c-care about you?" She rushed on, face heating up. "Kaoru-chan was like my sister, and Kenshin-san is like my older brother, and both of them are dear friends . . . it hurts me, too, Sano. I'm just worried about you, because . . . I don't want something to happen to my other . . ."

No matter how hard Kameko tried to force the word 'brother' out of her mouth, it wouldn't come out. _It's too big of a lie . . . so big I can't even force myself to tell it._ She decided to abandon the sentence all together and restarted. "My point is . . . _ano_ . . ."

The kunoichi inwardly cringed; what was she supposed to say now? Her face burned with embarrassment from the awkward situation she'd blundered her way into. She felt Sanosuke's eyes on her for a few moments before he turned around again.

"Bein' pissed off and drunk at the same time can make me do weird stuff," Sano said quietly, the bold aku kanji facing the kunoichi. "I might hit ya or . . . or do somethin' worse . . ." _Like kiss you . . ._ "You should go, Kame-chan. The others might be lookin' for ya."

Kameko watched Sano as he opened the door to his room and disappeared inside, closing the door firmly behind him. She took slight comfort in the fact that he'd used the affectionate nickname for her, and that he had an extremely high tolerance to sake. It also looked like he was going to stay holed up in his long house; if anything did come up, the kunoichi would likely hear it.

With those affirmations and a last, long look at the door, Kameko started her journey back to the dojo, heart heavy.

_That evening . . ._

Kameko was surprised to find a rather lonely dojo when she opened the door; she knew Megumi had probably gone back to Oguni Clinic and Tsubame with her family or Tae, but Yahiko wasn't back yet, and that worried her, despite the ten-year-old's prowess at kenjutsu. _Yahiko-kun sustained heavy injuries last night . . ._

The kunoichi's own wound smarted then, stronger than the constant throbbing she'd endured the entire day, as she went down the hall, and one hand drifted absentmindedly to her abdomen. Her smoky amethyst eyes filled with tears as she leaned against the kitchen door, but not because of the pain. The wound served as an aching reminder—not only of her failure to protect Kaoru, but how she herself had barely escaped the dark jaws of death. Kameko considered herself extremely, and bitterly, fortunate that Enishi's sudden stab hadn't sliced through any of her vital organs. Maybe he'd let her live so that she could suffer, just like the rest of the Kenshingumi, but she would never know.

_If I think _I'm _suffering, I can't even begin to imagine how Kenshin-san feels right now,_ Kameko thought, gritting her teeth as she took a few painful steps into the kitchen. _Poor Kenshin-san . . . and Kaoru-chan . . . they didn't deserve it, not one bit . . ._

The kunoichi put a pot of water on the stove, deciding on a small cup of tea to calm her somewhat, and sank gratefully into a stool propped up against the wall. Tears were beginning to slip out as the terrible memories of the previous evening seeped into her mind. _Just when it seemed like everything was finally coming together, too . . . out of all of us, Kaoru-chan deserved it the absolute least. She was the nicest of all of us, a lively young woman who basically took us, a bunch of rurouni, under her wing, despite how poor she was, and gave as all a place to live . . . made us feel wanted and important. No one else has a soul as generous and kind as that._

Kameko wiped her eyes and dropped a tea bag into the bubbling pot. _And then Kenshin-san . . . sure, he killed scores of people as a hitokiri, but he's changed so much. He dedicated his life to helping and protecting the weak, the innocent, the good, and the ordinary. He's saved Japan from bloodshed by defeating Shishio. He's brought Aoshi-san back, a man consumed almost entirely by darkness. And he's helped so many people while he's been here. On top of all that, he's such a wonderful person: polite, caring, understanding, strong . . . the list is almost endless._

Kameko poured the tea into a cup, took a small careful sip, and stared into the murky mixture, her tear-streaked face reflected back at her. _It really does seem like the worst things happen to the best of people. I wonder where we'll all go from here . . . _is_ there anywhere we can go from here? _

The kunoichi abruptly sat up in the stool, placing her cup on the counter. _Footsteps—!_ She listened closely, straining her ears. _There's three pairs of them . . . one's Yahiko-kun_. She relaxed a little and approached the door. _But who else could be with him?_ She was nearly to the door when it swung open from the other side.

"Kameko-san!"

The kunoichi's eyes widened as a short girl rushed into her arms. "Misao-chan?" Kameko's gaze shifted to the sixteen-year-old's tall, emotionless companion who was still outside. "Aoshi-san? Er, _konbanwa_—"

"Kameko-san, tell me he's lying!" Misao demanded, clutching the older girl's yukata sleeves. "Please, tell me Yahiko's lying . . ."

"Lying?" Kameko echoed, looking at Yahiko in confusion, but when she followed the younger kunoichi's troubled gaze to the burning incense and small black headstone in the corner of the room, her eyes softened. "Yahiko-kun tells the truth . . . I hate to say it, Misao-chan, but . . ."

". . . No." Misao drew nearer to the small shrine, eyes wide, as Aoshi leaned against the wall. "No, that can't be . . ."

Yahiko plopped onto the floor, bowing his head. "It's not a lie," he said softly. "That's Kaoru. It's too late. Kaoru was murdered, and Kenshin's broken . . . and in the end, I couldn't do anything . . ."

Yahiko's words stabbed at Kameko's heart, and her eyes began welling up with tears for the umpteenth time that day. _Yahiko-kun's blaming himself, too . . ._

Misao looked from Yahiko to the shrine to Kameko, and then back again, before clenching her bag's strings and swinging it hard—connecting right with the ten-year-old's head. Kameko's eyes widened, but she didn't know what she was supposed to do. "I don't want to hear any of your whining!" she shouted, holding her bag up. "How girly can you get?"

"You!" Yahiko growled, clutching his bleeding head.

"Keep your whining until later! You have something you have to do right now!" Misao slammed what seemed to be a well-worn book on the mat.

"Oh!" Kameko realized. "Is that . . . Tomoe-san's diary?"

Misao nodded firmly, turning back to Yahiko. "This is what Kameko-san and Kaoru-san asked me to bring. It's the diary of Himura's dead wife, with her true feelings written in it. We'll pry open that murderer's eyes and show him this, to slap him in the fact with his stupidity and the senselessness of what he's done! Then we'll make him bow down so hard in apology at Kaoru-san's grave, he'll bury his face in dirt!"

The sixteen-year-old's green-blue eyes narrowed. "Ordinarily, I _would_ want to take his head and use it as an offering, but that would stray from Kaoru-san's Kamiya Kasshin-Ryuu and go against Himura's vow. But we at least have to do this, or Kaoru-san will never rest in peace!" She looked at Yahiko sternly. "And this is a task for _you_, Kaoru-san's first student, and one whose potential Himura saw! I'll help, too—what about you, Kameko-san?"

Kameko smiled a little, her first in a while. "Of course, Misao-chan. It _is_ what Kaoru-chan wanted, so it's the least I can do." _After failing to protect her,_ she added silently.

Misao smiled, too, and nodded. "Okay, so let's first find the—what?"

"Huh?" Yahiko blinked. "Nothing . . . I just thought . . . you're always such an upbeat person."

"Well." Misao blinked, as well, before grinning and winking. "Energy is my strong point."

Yahiko rolled his eyes at that. "Or rather, your only strong point."

"What!"

"But it's just like you said!" Yahiko punched into his open hand. "We can't let him get away with this!"

"We'll go see Kenshin-san first thing in the morning, then," Kameko decided. "Sano, too. Then we'll search for Enishi-san!"

_The next morning . . ._

When Kameko awoke and ambled into the main room to change her bandages, she was surprised to find Misao was already up, deep in thought as she sat at the low table and stared into her tea. She looked up in alarm once the older kunoichi entered—Kameko noted the redness of her eyes, but didn't mention it—then relaxed. "_Ohayou_, Kameko-san. Why are you up this early?" Her head tilted to one side questioningly. "And wearing just a top of bandages and a hakama . . . ?"

"_Ohayou_, Misao-chan," Kameko greeted, settling on a stool rather than the floor. "I normally get up this early to train, but . . ." She motioned to both sides of her abdomen as she unwrapped the bloody bandages. "As you can see, I can't really train like this. A mental alarm I can't turn off, I guess. But my bandages needed changing."

Misao winced a little. "Ouch. How did you get that one, Kameko-san?"

Kameko smiled sadly as she dabbed at the throbbing wound with a damp cloth . "I got it trying to protect Kaoru-chan . . . Enishi-san found us in the smoke and I told her to run, that I'd hold him off . . . but it was a pathetic attempt. I barely held him off for five minutes. Part of it was because I was electrified in my previous battle, which messed with my senses and reflexes, but despite that . . ."

Kameko sighed as she wrapped the clean bandages around her. "I honestly stood no chance. That man was mind over body. He took a direct hit from Kenshin-san's Kuzu-Ryuusen, and he took it and smirked like it was nothing. There was no hope for me." A single tear fell, and she closed her eyes. "I knew it. All I was intending to do was give Kaoru-chan enough time to escape, or for Kenshin-san or anyone else to find her and help her, but . . ."

Kameko trailed off with another small sigh as she tied off the bandages, blinking back more tears. The past two days had made her so emotional; it was almost foreign to the kunoichi.

"I'm sorry, Kameko-san," Misao said truthfully, lowering her head to shield her own brimming eyes. "It was a stupid question, I should've known . . ."

"No need to apologize, Misao-chan," Kameko said with a dismissive wave of her hand. She pulled up the sleeves of her white gi to cover herself properly. "You couldn't have known for sure." Misao didn't respond, so she asked with a small smile, "Where's Aoshi-san?"

Misao's face brightened at the mention of her beloved Aoshi-sama. "Oh, he left a little bit earlier. He said he wanted to do something before seeing Himura. I guess he's doing some meditating amidst nature—well, something like that. Aoshi-sama does that back in Kyoto, too."

"Will he be back soon?"

Misao shrugged. "It depends. I guess we'll wait for him until Yahiko wakes up—"

"Someone say my name?" A yawning Yahiko wandered into the room, rubbing his eyes.

"_Ohayou_, Yahiko-kun." Kameko winced a bit as she eased herself off the stool. "Do you want something to eat before we leave? There's probably some leftover rice, at the very least . . ."

"No, it's better if we go as soon as we can," Yahiko refused immediately. "I'm not that hungry anyway."

"Honestly, I'm not either," Kameko admitted, glancing at Misao, who nodded in agreement. "So . . . should we go now, then?"

Both Yahiko and Misao nodded in unison, and with that, the trio started off on the trail.

"Your eyes are red," Yahiko observed, looking back at Misao as they walked. "Didn't get much sleep?"

_I thought they were,_ Kameko thought in agreement. Again, she didn't bring it up herself.

"Mm . . . kinda like that," Misao half-agreed. "Don't worry about it."

"Where's Aoshi?" Yahiko asked.

"He said he has some business to take care of before seeing Himura," Misao reiterated.

"Then we should've gotten Sanosuke first," Yahiko sighed. "It's a pain to babysit you, even with Kameko here."

"Hey!" Misao huffed.

"Oh!"

Both Kameko and Yahiko had seen the lanky figure in the distance at the same time, and the kunoichi immediately noticed the pack he had slung over his shoulder, just like when he'd left for Kyoto. _Why would he have that . . . ?_

"Sanosuke!" Yahiko exclaimed, running to him. "I didn't know you were here! Good timing. Let's go see Kenshin again and—"

"Don't bother," Sano said shortly, looking straight ahead and not at the others. "Go home, and never come back here again." His chocolate brown eyes narrowed. "Seein' him is a waste of time, when he's alive, but dead inside."

Kameko's eyes widened as Sano brushed right past them. "Sano . . . ?"

"Sanosuke!" Yahiko shouted, whirling around.

"I left my room in the Gorotsuki long house," the ex-fighter-for-hire called, raising his bandaged hand. "I'm givin' it to you two, so hurry up and move. If you stay at the dojo, you'll end up broken, too." He lowered his arm. "See ya."

_Iie . . . not Sano, too, onegai, not him, too!_ Kameko watched as Sano kept walking, further and further away. _I can't let him leave!_

"Yahiko-kun, Misao-chan, go on without me, I'll catch up!" was the only warning the kunoichi gave before taking off, ignoring her wound, which ached and bled anew. She knew her footsteps were loud with the amount of trouble she was having running, and she didn't buy it when Sano refused to stop or turn around.

It was when Kameko's breaths began coming in ragged, pained gasps that the nineteen-year-old finally acknowledged her. He stopped, much to her gratitude, and asked in a low tone, "Why're you followin' me? You shouldn't be runnin' around."

"Why . . . why are you . . . leaving . . . ?" Kameko panted, trying to catch her breath.

"There's no use tryna stop me."

"But there must be . . . a reason . . ."

"That place's broken now. What good'll it do to stay there?"

"But what about those of us who are left?" The unspoken plea in Kameko's voice was evident. "Yahiko-kun, Megumi-san, Tsubame-chan, Tae-san . . . me . . ."

"You guys should get as far as ya can from there, too. You'll go crazy if you stay."

Kameko grabbed Sano's free arm as he started walking again. "Kaoru-chan's left us, Kenshin-san's left us . . . don't you dare leave us, too, Sagara Sanosuke!"

"And why'd anyone care if I left?" Sano asked scathingly, wrenching his arm from the kunoichi's grasp so hard she almost lost her balance. "Why do _you_ care so much?"

"My onee-chan has left me . . . my onii-san has left me . . ." Tears sparkled in smoky amethyst orbs as she clutched the white aku jacket and leaned her forehead against its owner's back. "Don't leave me, too, Sanosuke . . . _douka, watashi wo sutenai de kudasai, itoshii hito . . ._"

The truth was finally, thankfully out, even if only somewhat. Kameko felt the cloth slip out of her hands, and she instantly lost all of her optimism. Everything was hopeless: her pleas, her confession, the situation . . . nothing was working out. She'd only wasted her breath.

So when the kunoichi's chin was forced upwards, she didn't expect the blow that fell—upon her lips.

The kiss was soft, sweet, and unbearably short. Before Kameko had even realized what had happened, Sano drew away gently. Smoky amethyst met intense chocolate for the slightest of moments, before Sano turned around for a final time and began walking into the distance.

Kameko had fallen to her knees, and when she tried to call Sano's name to stop him, it stuck in her throat and wouldn't come out. What had that kiss meant? That he returned her feelings? That he was sorry? That he was giving her pity? She couldn't make out anything. Her image of him walking further and further away became blurred, until all she could make out was green and a splattering of other colors. She bowed her head, feeling only tears, and finally managed in a choked, defeated whisper, "Sanosuke . . ."

**A/N: So Kameko somewhat confessed, and Sano finally kissed her! Things just climaxed, in their relationship at least :) I had fun writing this one haha.**

**A note about '**_**Douka, watashi wo sutenai de kudasai, itoshii hito**_**': it's supposed to mean 'Please don't leave me, my dear/beloved'—I looked around for a good translation but I'm not sure since they were all different :P Please tell me if you have a better one! :)**

**More translations:**

_**Hai**_**—yes**

_**Hitokiri—**_**manslayer**

_**Konbanwa—**_**good evening**

_**Ohayou—**_**good morning**

_**Onegai—**_**please**

_**Onee-chan—**_**big sister**

_**Onii-san—**_**big brother**

_**Douka, watashi wo sutenai de kudasai, itoshii hito—**_**Please don't leave me, my dear/beloved**

**I'll do my best to update soon! :D Review lots please ^^**


End file.
